Main Entry:

hair

Pronunciation:

\ˈher\

Function:

noun

Usage:

often attributive

Etymology:

Middle English, from Old English hǣr; akin to Old High German hār hair

Date:

before 12th century

1 a: a slender threadlike outgrowth of the epidermis of an animal ; especially : one of the usually pigmented filaments that form the characteristic coat of a mammal b: the hairy covering of an animal or a body part ; especially : the coating of hairs on a human head2: haircloth3 a: a minute distance or amount <won by a hair> b: a precise degree <aligned to a hair>4obsolete : nature, character5: a filamentous structure that resembles hair <leaf hair>

— hair·less adjective

— hair·less·ness noun

— hair·like \-ˌlīk\ adjective

— in one's hair

: persistently and annoyingly in one's presence <can't work with you in my hair all day>

— out of one's hair

: out of one's way : not in one's hair <keep the children out of his hair for a while>

[hair illustration]