tousle

American  

[tou-zuhl] / ˈtaʊ zəl /

Or touzle

verb (used with object)

tousled, tousling

1. to disorder or dishevel.

   The wind tousled our hair.

2. to handle roughly.

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noun

1. a disheveled or rumpled mass, especially of hair.

2. a disordered, disheveled, or tangled condition.

tousle British  

/ ˈtaʊzəl /

verb

1. to tangle, ruffle, or disarrange

2. to treat roughly

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noun

1. a disorderly, tangled, or rumpled state

2. a dishevelled or disordered mass, esp of hair

Etymology

Origin of tousle

1400–50; late Middle English touselen (v.); cognate with Low German tūseln. See touse, -le

Example Sentences

"You tousle its mane and pull its ears, but all the time you’re thinking, those claws, those claws, those claws."

From BBC • Sep. 14, 2024

Then I reached over to tousle his hair and found it was completely wet.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 18, 2022

“The younger generation is interested in rollers to style their hair because they can tousle it to look modern and sophisticated,” he said.

From New York Times • Sep. 1, 2021

With his Little Prince notebook and his 2am tousle, he could still pass for a student, even at 42, with a shelf full of silverware.

From The Guardian • May 10, 2019

“This one’s my boy,” he said to Sophie and me, reaching up to tousle Francis’s hair.

From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt