pageboy

American  

[peyj-boi] / ˈpeɪdʒˌbɔɪ /

Or page boy

noun

1. a hairstyle in which the hair is rolled under, usually at shoulder-length.

2. a youth or man who works as a page, as at a hotel.

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pageboy British  

/ ˈpeɪdʒˌbɔɪ /

noun

1. a smooth medium-length hairstyle with the ends of the hair curled under and a long fringe falling onto the forehead from the crown

2. a less common word for page 2

3. another word for page 2

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Etymology

Origin of pageboy

First recorded in 1900–05; page ² + boy

Explanation

Long ago, a pageboy was a knight's assistant. Today, a pageboy is either an employee who runs errands, or it's a bowl-shaped haircut with curled-under ends. The pageboy haircut gets its name from the idea that medieval pageboys may have worn their hair in a similar style, although historians aren't certain about this fact. It first became popular in the early 20th century when many child actors had pageboy haircuts, and it became fashionable again in the 1970s when stars like singer Toni Tennille and skater Dorothy Hamill sported pageboys.

Example Sentences

The papers took pains to note that Wyman came to court “hatless, her hair in a pageboy bob. She wore a tangerine gabardine shirt-maker dress.”

From Los Angeles Times • May 24, 2024

His curly hair is cut in the pageboy style and dyed cherry-red.

From New York Times • Feb. 24, 2023

Her pageboy haircut is Dorothy Hamill tight and her uniform is a shapeless orange sweater, a pleated or A-line skirt and knee socks.

From Salon • Oct. 11, 2022

It was April 26, 1954, and she was a second-grader at Franklin Sherman Elementary in McLean, Va., a little girl with a brown pageboy haircut and a gaptoothed grin.

From Seattle Times • Nov. 8, 2021

Dressed in a caftan and an appropriate white pageboy wig, Amy began phoning my father at the office.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Related Words

• braid
• dreadlocks
• haircut
• hairdo
• headdress
• ponytail