curlier; curliest
1
: tending to curl
also : having curls
curly hair
2
: having the grain composed of fibers that undulate without crossing and that often form alternating light and dark lines
curly maple
curliness noun

Examples of curly in a Sentence

She has curly hair and blue eyes. The dog's tail is curly.
Recent Examples on the Web There, Mohamed reunited with Ruba and their three children: Amin, who is seven years old and dreams of becoming an artist; Jannah, who is six, with curly hair inherited from her mother; and Reem, who was born during the May, 2021, war and had just begun speaking full sentences. Claire Porter Robbins, The New Yorker, 5 Mar. 2024 The boldest folks walked right up to the man with curly hair, eyes hidden behind sunglasses, and asked for a picture. Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2024 Benioff is hard to miss — the 59-year-old stands at a towering 6 feet, 5 inches and is often seen driving around Waimea in his white Hummer pickup, sporting his signature look of a baseball cap with his curly brown hair tumbling out back. Dara Kerr, NPR, 28 Feb. 2024 Can layered shoulder-length haircuts work for curly hair? Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 22 Feb. 2024 For starters, with a curly hair half updo and bold smokey eye, actress Laverne Cox had a Renaissance moment on the red carpet. Larry Stansbury, Essence, 19 Feb. 2024 Someone with dark skin and voluminous, curly hair, an Afro-Latina? Paula Soria, The Arizona Republic, 18 Feb. 2024 What Bonds is saying, however, is that every time he’s been to the Super Bowl to trim Mahomes’ curly high-and-tight, the Chiefs have won. Jenna Thompson, Kansas City Star, 13 Feb. 2024 According to Maine, silk curlers work well with curly hair, enhancing curls with frizz-free definition. Jenny Berg, Vogue, 11 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'curly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of curly was in 1598

Dictionary Entries Near curly

Cite this Entry

“Curly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curly. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

curly

adjective
curlier; curliest
: tending to curl
also : having curls
curly hair
curliness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on curly

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!