hairy
Americanadjective
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hairier,
comparative
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hairiest
superlative
adjective
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having or covered with hair
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slang
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difficult or problematic
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scaring, dangerous, or exciting
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of hairy
First recorded in 1250–1300, hairy is from the Middle English word heeri. See hair, -y 1
Explanation
Hairy things are furry or fuzzy — covered with hair. If your hairy dog lies on your bed, your bed may end up hairy as well. If your dad has a bushy beard, he has a hairy face, and while some kinds of caterpillars are sleek and smooth, others are hairy. Informally, you can also use hairy to mean "scary." The biggest roller coaster at an amusement park will probably have a few hairy loops and turns. This slang meaning has evolved from its original use as "difficult," dating back to the 1840s.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
If you happen to be swimming in the Salish Sea at night and imagine tiny hairy legs creeping up your body, there is now at least one unsettling reason that image feels plausible.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have identified two previously unknown species of sea spider, including one with hairy legs and striking red eyes.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 25, 2026
It was far from perfect, and I did have to overcome my aversion to seeing so many naked, hairy feet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
It looks like a hairy alien from outer space.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
Her hairy front legs pulled her round abdomen out of the shadows.
From "Healer of the Water Monster" by Brian Young
Bumblebees have much hairier bodies than honeybees, making it easier for dust and airborne particles containing heavy metals to cling to them before being carried back to the nest with pollen.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 7, 2026
Things got even hairier when Usha’s execrable husband, Vice President J.D.
From Slate ● Mar. 28, 2025
Criticism has flooded in, including that engineering mammoth-like creatures is a big stretch from making mice hairier, as well as being unethical, and that the whole project is a publicity stunt.
From BBC ● Mar. 4, 2025
The two subspecies look quite similar, but the northern version has subtle physical differences, including hairier ears and feet that are better suited to its swampy habitat.
From National Geographic ● Jan. 24, 2024
A few feet away, another shape, hairier, fled the growing flames.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
“It was the hairiest thing we’ve ever done because it was so chaotic and impossible to plan. And when I pulled those seconds out, the sequence flew. It was brutal to have to do it.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 14, 2023
She said I was the hairiest thing she had ever seen.
From Salon ● Jan. 31, 2021
A lumbering, chunky beast clad in a sheep-like coat of hair, it is the hairiest and fattiest of pigs.
From The Guardian ● Dec. 27, 2019
“This will be — probably — your hairiest caucus of all time,” one of the show’s anchors cracked wise to the cartoonist.
From New York Times ● Feb. 1, 2016
Malik has the hairiest toes, and for the last few weeks, his right big toenail has been all black and blue and yellow because he jammed it doing a backflip.
From "A High Five for Glenn Burke" by Phil Bildner
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
