hair
hair
Pronunciation
/hɛr/
/h/: voiceless glottal fricative
/ɛ/: open-mid front unrounded vowel
/r/: alveolar approximant
Word Form Variations
Singular: hair
Plural: hair (referring to the collective mass on a head or body, e.g., "she has long hair"), hairs (referring to individual strands, e.g., "there were a few hairs on the carpet")
Adjective: hairy (e.g., "a hairy arm")
Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms
Noun
1. The fine, thread-like strands that grow from the skin of mammals, especially from the scalp of humans. * Definition: The natural covering on the head of a person, or the fibrous growth that covers the body of many animals. * Synonyms: tresses, mane, fur, fleece, pile * Antonyms: baldness, bareness, skin (in the context of being hairless)
2. A single filament or strand of the growth described above. * Definition: An individual, slender, keratinous outgrowth from the epidermis of a mammal. * Synonyms: strand, filament, fiber, bristle * Antonyms: (no direct antonym, as it refers to a single unit)
3. A very small or minute amount or distance; a narrow margin. * Definition: Used colloquially to indicate a barely perceptible quantity, distance, or difference. * Synonyms: whisker, fraction, speck, iota, millimeter * Antonyms: multitude, abundance, mile, chasm, ocean (figuratively)
Adjective (from "hairy")
While "hair" itself isn't typically used as an adjective, its derived form "hairy" is.
Hairy:
1. Covered with hair. * Definition: Possessing a significant amount of natural hair, fur, or bristles. * Synonyms: bushy, shaggy, hirsute, bristly, woolly * Antonyms: bald, smooth, hairless, depilated, sleek
2. Difficult, risky, or dangerous. * Definition: Colloquial term describing a situation or task that is challenging or fraught with peril. * Synonyms: perilous, tricky, risky, dangerous, dicey, chancy * Antonyms: easy, safe, straightforward, simple, smooth
Examples of Use
Books:
"Her hair, the color of burnished copper, spilled over her shoulders like a waterfall." (J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone)
"He ran a hand through his already disheveled hair, a sign of his growing frustration." (Stephen King, The Shining)
Newspapers:
"The salon owner reported a surge in demand for short hair styles this summer." ("Local News Daily,")
"Police are seeking a suspect with long, dark hair in connection with the recent robbery." ("The Daily Chronicle,")
Online Publications:
"Achieving healthy hair requires a balanced diet and proper hydration, not just expensive products." (https://www.google.com/search?q=WellnessToday.com, "The Science of Healthy Hair,")
"The celebrity's new blue hair sparked a viral trend on social media." (PopCultureNews.net, "Star's Bold New Look,")
Various Entertainment Mediums and Platforms:
Film: (Dialogue from a romantic comedy) "I love the way your hair smells after you've been in the rain." (Before Sunrise, 1995)
Television Series: (From a crime drama) "We found a single hair at the crime scene, and it's a perfect DNA match." (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Season 8, Episode 3)
Music (Song Lyrics): "Long hair, don't care, just living my life in the sun." (Various pop songs often feature similar themes)
Video Games: (Character description) "The elven archer had long, flowing white hair that shimmered in the moonlight." (The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim)
Social Media (Instagram Caption): "New hair, who dis? 💇♀️ Feeling fresh and ready for the week!" (User @stylishsally, posted June 29, 2025)
General Public Discourse:
"My hair is a mess today, I really need a haircut." (Overheard in a coffee shop, Juja, Kenya)
"She always has her hair tied back when she's working in the garden." (Conversation between neighbors)
"Don't split hairs over such a minor detail; let's focus on the bigger picture." (Common idiom used in a discussion)
"He had a close shave, missing the accident by a hair's breadth." (Referring to a very narrow escape)
10 Famous Quotes Using Hair
"I am no longer young enough to know everything. I am bald and I have a great deal of hair in my ears. I have reached the stage when I have to ask questions." (George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion)
"The woman who cuts her hair is about to change her life." (Coco Chanel)
"No, I am not a homosexual. If I were, I would have my hair done, and I would have my ears pierced." (Marlon Brando)
"Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city." (George Burns, who often joked about his wife's hair in their acts, but this quote, though not directly using "hair," captures a similar spirit of dry wit that extended to all aspects of life, including appearance)
"A woman's hair is her crowning glory." (Traditional Proverb)
"Life is like a comb; it has no hair until you get it." (Garrison Keillor, Lake Wobegon Days)
"I have a lot of hair, and it's always been a challenge. It's like having another person on my head." (Julia Roberts)
"Just remember, once you're over the hill, you pick up speed." (Attributed to Charles Schulz, creator of Peanuts, which often featured characters with distinctive hair styles like Charlie Brown's single curl)
"You don't tug on Superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't pull the mask off the ol' Lone Ranger, and you don't mess around with Jim." (Jim Croce, "You Don't Mess Around with Jim," a song about tough characters, whose appearances, including hair (or lack thereof), often played a role in their persona.)
"And yet, by Heaven, I think my love as rare / As any she belied with false compare." (William Shakespeare, Sonnet 130, where the speaker contrasts his mistress's natural appearance, including her "wires for hair," with exaggerated beauty standards.)
Etymology
The word "hair" has a long history, tracing its roots back to ancient languages.
Its journey to modern English started with Old English, where it appeared as "hær" (pronounced somewhat like "hair" is today). At that time, "hær" already meant both the collective mass of hair (like on a head) and a single strand of hair. So, its core meaning hasn't changed much over centuries.
This Old English "hær" came from an even older language called Proto-Germanic. Scholars have reconstructed this ancestral language (meaning they've figured out what its words likely sounded like and meant, even though no written records exist). In Proto-Germanic, the word was "hēran".
Going even further back, hēran might have come from a much, much older language called Proto-Indo-European (PIE). The suggested PIE root is "*ghers-", which meant something like "to stand out," "to bristle," or "to rise to a point." This makes sense, as hair, especially when coarse or on an animal, can stand out or bristle. This connection to "bristling" is also why you see a link between "hair" and words like "horror" (think of hair standing on end from fear).
So, in simple terms, the word "hair" has always been about those fine, thread-like growths on skin, and its earliest known meaning in Old English was already exactly what we understand it to be today. It's a word that has held its meaning quite consistently through different stages of language development.
Phrases + Idioms Containing Hair
Here's a list of phrases and idioms using "hair":
A hair's breadth: A very small margin; a tiny distance.
Let one's hair down: To relax and behave in a free, uninhibited way.
Get in one's hair: To annoy or bother someone.
Split hairs: To argue about very small, insignificant details.
Make one's hair stand on end: To frighten or terrify someone.
Not a hair out of place: Perfectly neat and tidy.
By a hair: By a very small amount.
To tear one's hair out: To be extremely frustrated or anxious.
Have hair of the dog (that bit you): To have an alcoholic drink to cure a hangover.
To comb through something with a fine-tooth comb: To examine something very thoroughly and meticulously (using a synonym for "hair" indirectly).
Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA
Source Information
Definition of hair from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.
