Printer Friendly
The Free Dictionary
982,700,355 visitors served.
?
Dictionary/
thesaurus
Medical
dictionary
Legal
dictionary
Financial
dictionary
Acronyms
 
Idioms
Encyclopedia
Wikipedia
encyclopedia
?

hair

   Also found in: Medical, Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia, Hutchinson 0.06 sec.
hair  (hâr)
n.
1.
a. Any of the cylindrical, keratinized, often pigmented filaments characteristically growing from the epidermis of a mammal.
b. A growth of such filaments, as that forming the coat of an animal or covering the scalp of a human.
2. A filamentous projection or bristle similar to a hair, such as a seta of an arthropod or an epidermal process of a plant.
3. Fabric made from the hair of certain animals: a coat of alpaca hair.
4.
a. A minute distance or narrow margin: won by a hair.
b. A precise or exact degree: calibrated to a hair.

[Middle English her, from Old English hr.]

hair
Noun
1. any of the threadlike outgrowths on the skin of mammals
2. a mass of such outgrowths, such as on a person's head or an animal's body
3. Bot a threadlike growth from the outer layer of a plant
4. a very small distance or margin: he missed death by a hair
5. get in someone's hair Informal to annoy someone
6. hair of the dog an alcoholic drink taken as a cure for a hangover
7. let one's hair down to enjoy oneself without restraint
8. not turn a hair to show no reaction
9. split hairs to make petty and unnecessary distinctions [Old English hær]
hairless adj

hair  (hâr)
1. One of the fine strands that grow from the skin of mammals, usually providing insulation against the cold. Modified hairs sometimes serve as protective defenses, as in the quills of a porcupine or hedgehog, or as tactile organs, as in the whiskers (called vibrissae) of many nocturnal mammals. Hair filaments are a modification of the epidermis of the skin and are composed primarily of keratin. Hair also contains melanin, which determines hair color.
2. A slender growth resembling a mammalian hair, found on insects and other animals.
3. A fine, threadlike growth from the epidermis of plants. See more at trichome.
click for a larger image
hair

Hair
See also baldness; beards

1. a loss of hair, feathers, or wool.
2. baldness. — alopecic, adj.
an abnormal fear of hair.
the state of being hairy. — crinous, adj.
the use of electrolysis for removing moles, warts, or excess hair. — electrologist, n.
1. a condition of shaggy hairiness.
2. Biology. the state of being covered “with long, stiff hairs. — hirsute, adj.
the state or quality of being covered with small spines or bristles. — hispid, adj.
a condition of excessive hairiness either all over the body or covering a particular part.
people with smooth hair; a division of mankind characterized by people with such hair. Cf. Ulotrichi.Leiotrichan, adj.
the loss of hair, especially of the eyelashes, as a result of disease.
a surgical instrument for pulling out hairs.
darkness or blackness of eyes, hair, or complexion.
an excessive hairiness; furriness. — pilose, adj.
falling out of the hair.
a condition of splitting of the hair.
1. the act or process of cutting the hair, especially as a religious rite or custom.
2. the shaved part of the head, usually the crown, of a member of a religious order. — tonsorial, adj.
a condition in which the hair grows inward, especially the eyelashes.
Medicine. a loss of hair sensibility.
a hairball.
a condition of extreme brittleness of the hair, often following an illness.
Medicine. the scientific study of hair and its diseases. — trichologist, n.
a condition of the hair in which it is matted or crusted.
an obsession with hair.
any disease of the hair caused by a fungus.
Medicine. any disease of the hair. — trichopathic, adj.
the practice of eating hair.
a mania for pinching off one’s hair.
1. Medicine. any disease or abnormal growth of the hair.
2. a heavy growth of hair.
Medicine. an abnormal desire to pull out one’s own hair, especially by delirious patients. Also called trichologia.
people with woolly, tightly curled, or crisp hair; a division of mankind characterized by people with such hair. Cf. Leiotrichi.ulotrichous, adj.
the condition or quality of being covered with long, soft hairs, as certain plants, or hairlike appendages, as certain of the membranes of the body. — villous, adj.
a person with light-colored hair and fair complexion. — xanthochroid, xanthochroous, adj.
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Noun1.hairhair - a covering for the body (or parts of it) consisting of a dense growth of threadlike structures (as on the human head); helps to prevent heat loss; "he combed his hair"; "each hair consists of layers of dead keratinized cells"
pelage, coat - growth of hair or wool or fur covering the body of an animal
guard hair - coarse hairs that form the outer fur and protect the underfur of certain mammals
mane - long coarse hair growing from the crest of the animal's neck
forelock, foretop - a lock of a horse's mane that grows forward between the ears
beard - hairy growth on or near the face of certain mammals
body covering - any covering for the body or a body part
body hair - short hair growing over a person's body
pile, down - fine soft dense hair (as the fine short hair of cattle or deer or the wool of sheep or the undercoat of certain dogs)
head of hair, mane - growth of hair covering the scalp of a human being
hairline - the natural margin formed by hair on the head
parting, part - a line of scalp that can be seen when sections of hair are combed in opposite directions; "his part was right in the middle"
cowlick - a tuft of hair that grows in a different direction from the rest of the hair and usually will not lie flat
coif, coiffure, hair style, hairdo, hairstyle - the arrangement of the hair (especially a woman's hair)
lock, ringlet, whorl, curl - a strand or cluster of hair
facial hair - hair on the face (especially on the face of a man)
crotch hair, pubic hair, bush - hair growing in the pubic area
eyebrow, supercilium, brow - the arch of hair above each eye
eyelash, lash, cilium - any of the short curved hairs that grow from the edges of the eyelids
integumentary system - the skin and its appendages
ceratin, keratin - a fibrous scleroprotein that occurs in the outer layer of the skin and in horny tissues such as hair, feathers, nails, and hooves
2.hair - a very small distance or space; "they escaped by a hair's-breadth"; "they lost the election by a whisker"
small indefinite amount, small indefinite quantity - an indefinite quantity that is below average size or magnitude
3.hairhair - filamentous hairlike growth on a plant; "peach fuzz"
plant process, enation - a natural projection or outgrowth from a plant body or organ
stinging hair - a multicellular hair in plants like the stinging nettle that expels an irritating fluid
beard - a tuft or growth of hairs or bristles on certain plants such as iris or grasses
4.hair - any of the cylindrical filaments characteristically growing from the epidermis of a mammal; "there is a hair in my soup"
mammal, mammalian - any warm-blooded vertebrate having the skin more or less covered with hair; young are born alive except for the small subclass of monotremes and nourished with milk
filum, filament - a threadlike structure (as a chainlike series of cells)
ingrown hair - a hair that does not emerge from the follicle but remains embedded in the skin (usually causing inflammation)
5.hair - cloth woven from horsehair or camelhair; used for upholstery or stiffening in garments
cloth, fabric, textile, material - artifact made by weaving or felting or knitting or crocheting natural or synthetic fibers; "the fabric in the curtains was light and semitransparent"; "woven cloth originated in Mesopotamia around 5000 BC"; "she measured off enough material for a dress"
6.hair - a filamentous projection or process on an organism
bristle - a stiff hair
sensory hair, vibrissa, whisker - a long stiff hair growing from the snout or brow of most mammals as e.g. a cat
seta - a stiff hair or bristle
pilus - hairlike structure especially on the surface of a cell or microorganism
appendage, outgrowth, process - a natural prolongation or projection from a part of an organism either animal or plant; "a bony process"

hair
noun locks, mane, tresses, shock, mop, head of hair let your hair down let yourself go, relax, chill out (slang), chiefly U.S. let off steam (informal) let it all hang out (informal) mellow out (informal) veg out (slang), chiefly U.S. outspan S. African not turn a hair remain calm, keep your cool (slang) not bat an eyelid, keep your hair on Brit. (informal) split hairs quibble, find fault, cavil, overrefine, pettifog
Translations
Spanish hair [hɛəʳ] n (gen) → pelo, cabellos mpl (= one hair); pelo, cabello (= head of hair); pelo, cabellera;
(on legs etc) → vello;
to do one's hair → arreglarse el pelo;
grey hair → canas fpl

French hair [hɛəʳ] ncheveux mpl;
(on body) → poils mpl, pilosité f;
(of animal) → pelage m (= single hair) (on head) → cheveu m: (on body, of animal) → poil m;
to do one's hair → se coiffer

German hair [hɛəʳ] n (collectively) (of person) → Haar nt, Haare pl: (of animal) → Fell nt;
(single hair) → Haar nt;
to do one's hair → sich frisieren;
by a hair's breadth → um Haaresbreite

Italian hair [hɛəʳ] ncapelli mpl (= single hair) (on head) → capello: (on body) → pelo;
to do one's hair → pettinarsi

?Page tools
Printer friendly
Cite / link
Email
Feedback
Add definition
? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
Her beautiful hair gleamed like molten gold in the warm firelight.
Rapidly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to its full length.
He would say to one of these women: This chin is too short, this nose is too long, this forehead is too high, this hair is too red, this complexion is too pallid, the perspective of the entire composition is incorrect; conclusion, the woman is not beautiful.
 
Dictionary/thesaurus browser? ? Full browser
 
 
Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Translations
?

Disclaimer | Privacy policy | Feedback | Copyright © 2008 Farlex, Inc.
All content on this website, including dictionary, thesaurus, literature, geography, and other reference data is for informational purposes only. This information should not be considered complete, up to date, and is not intended to be used in place of a visit, consultation, or advice of a legal, medical, or any other professional. Terms of Use.