noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of hairdo
Explanation
A hairdo is what a stylist gives you when he cuts and styles your hair. You might go to the salon to get a fancy hairdo before your cousin's wedding. Hairdo is an informal word for "hairstyle." It's the way your hair is cut, dried, and arranged on your head, especially if there's some effort put into it. The way your hair looks when you roll out of bed in the morning isn't a hairdo, and pulling it back into a ponytail or covering it with a bandanna isn't a hairdo either. The elaborate beehive piled five inches high on your grandma's head? Now that's a hairdo.
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:
Never mind that it was said to have been dreamed up by kids at a soda fountain that Short frequented and referred mainly to her upswept hairdo.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
On the catwalk and in his own life, Valentino exuded luxury down to the last detail of his immaculate hairdo and caramel tan, often photographed with multiple pug dogs at his side.
From Barron's ● Jan. 19, 2026
Her nightmarish laugh, gravity-defying hairdo and ferocious temper were part of a carefully constructed character that ranks as a comic masterpiece.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2025
Around the same time, Kirk changed the profile picture of his podcast’s Instagram and TikTok accounts to a picture of Cartman sporting the host’s hairdo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2025
A lady with a beauty-parlor hairdo rolled down the window.
From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls
They walk the streets pomaded, braided, wearing strangely arranged hairdos meant to call attention to themselves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 3, 2026
Distinguished by different hairdos and contrasting body language, Douglas, who can will himself to appear sedate, and James, who’s in a continual manic spiral, have more in common than either would care to admit.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 28, 2026
The hashtag "hanfu" has been viewed over eleven billion times on Instagram-like Xiaohongshu, and is filled with posts of women in elaborate costumes and hairdos.
From Barron's ● Nov. 14, 2025
Everywhere I look, I see shop windows, prams and women's hairdos festooned with blue, white and red Norwegian flags.
From BBC ● May 23, 2025
Women hold their beaded evening bags over their heads, trying to protect their foundering hairdos.
From "In the Time of the Butterflies" by Julia Alvarez
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.
