Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

hairy

American  
[hair-ee] / ˈhɛər i /

adjective

hairier, hairiest

  1. covered with hair; having much hair.

    Synonyms:
    shaggy, woolly, furry

  2. consisting of or resembling hair.

    moss of a hairy texture.

  3. Informal.

    1. causing anxiety or fright.

      a hairy trip through the rapids.

    2. full of hardship or difficulty.

      a hairy exam; a hairy illness.
hairy British  
/ ˈhɛərɪ /

adjective

  1. having or covered with hair

  2. slang

    1. difficult or problematic

    2. scaring, dangerous, or exciting

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

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.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

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.

Hairy Bikers star Si King has opened up about his love of food, family life, meeting his "best friend" Dave Myers and coping with grief.

From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026

King spoke about how the success of the show came at a cost as the Hairy Bikers were contracted to work 200 days a year filming, often thousands of miles away from home.

From BBC • Mar. 29, 2026

Myers met Dave, who was from Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria, while he was filming in Romania for the first Hairy Bikers series.

From BBC • Feb. 22, 2026

And France's commissioner for children Sarah El Hairy said Tuesday she had referred Grok's generated images to French prosecutors, the Arcom media regulator and the European Union.

From Barron's • Jan. 14, 2026

Wiley convinced the Hairy Man to turn himself into three animals—a big one, a not-so-big one, and a small one, a possum.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

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.