spit curl

noun

a tight curl of hair, usually pressed against the forehead or cheek.

Origin of spit curl

First recorded in 1825–35

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for spit curl

Historical Examples of spit curl

John Davis got his mutton cooked bi a spit-curl that waz dangling on Angeline Brown's forehead.
Josh Billings on Ice
Henry Wheeler Shaw

British Dictionary definitions for spit curl

spit curl

noun

US and Canadian a circular curl of hair pressed flat against the cheek or foreheadAlso called (esp British): kiss curl

Word Origin for spit curl

perhaps so called because it is sometimes plastered down with spittle

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