hairpin

noun

hair·pin | \ ˈher-ˌpin

Definition of hairpin

(Entry 1 of 2)

1 : a pin to hold the hair in place specifically : a long U-shaped pin

2 : something shaped like a hairpin specifically : a sharp U-shaped turn in a road

hairpin

adjective

Definition of hairpin (Entry 2 of 2)

: having the shape of a hairpin a hairpin turn also : having hairpin turns a steep hairpin road

Examples of hairpin in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

And then on my last day of filming, Jenna [Coleman] gave me an antique hairpin to commemorate Skerrett doing Victoria’s hair that was really, really lovely. — Caroline Hallemann, Town & Country, "Victoria Actress Nell Hudson on Why She Didn't Want a Fairytale Ending for Skerrett," 4 Feb. 2019 Contraband hairpins were allowed but had to be returned at the end of the evening. — Joy Resmovits, latimes.com, "What prom looks like in juvenile detention: contraband hairpins have to be returned at the end of the night," 21 June 2018 This year, pinners are particularly excited to celebrate with metallic eyeshadow, berry lipstick, shimmering nails, and golden hairpins. — Lauren Rearick, Teen Vogue, "Pinterest Shared Its Most Popular Holiday Beauty Routines for 2018," 6 Nov. 2018 Yamaha was smart enough to stage this road test for us in the Austrian Alps, where the roads suit it: sweeping turns, crazy-tight hairpins, gravel, wet corners, and discarded roadside schnitzel. — David Curcurito, Popular Mechanics, "Don't Call It a Trike: Why We Love Yamaha’s Double-Front-Wheel Motorcycle," 27 Sep. 2018 On Thursday, more than 700,000 people were expected to line the roads of Stage 12, culminating on the 21 hairpins of the Alpe d’Huez, one of cycling’s most famous climbs. — Joshua Robinson, WSJ, "The Tour de France’s Crowd Control Strategy: Hope Everyone Behaves," 19 July 2018 From there the road descends in muddy hairpins through forests of towering blue pine to the lush valley of Punakha. — Lawrence Osborne, Town & Country, "Why Everyone Is Traveling to Bhutan," 30 Mar. 2015 The track has 17 turns, including three extreme hairpins, and multiple elevation changes. — Fortune, "You'll Need to Spend $350,000 to Join This Private Miami Club," 28 June 2018 Generally, though, the songs aim to please crowds with sharp executions of familiar pop-rap sounds, lacking the hairpin turns of Lemonade or Beyoncé. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, "Beyoncé and Jay-Z’s Surprise Album Makes Marriage Into a Spectacle," 17 June 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

In some places along the drive, the speed limit will drop to 15 or 20 mph for hairpin curves, and even skilled drivers will do well to heed those warnings. — Kiona Smith-strickland, Popular Mechanics, "The Talimena Scenic Drive: Fall Leaves in the Ouachitas," 3 Oct. 2013 The road from his usual James Bond suave to Joe Bang’s twang being a long one with lots of hairpin curves. — Jennifer Brett, ajc, "What NASCAR has to say about Atlanta-filmed “Logan Lucky”," 19 Aug. 2017 The narrow two-lane road left little room for error, with hairpin curves and drop-offs of several hundred feet at several spots. — Brady Macdonald, latimes.com, "A trip on Route 66 proves to be uncharted territory for a master planner," 9 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hairpin.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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The first known use of hairpin was in 1771

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More Definitions for hairpin

hairpin

noun

English Language Learners Definition of hairpin

: a pin that is worn in your hair especially : a pin shaped like a U that is worn to hold your hair in place

: an extremely sharp turn in a road that is shaped like a U

See the full definition for hairpin in the English Language Learners Dictionary

hairpin

noun

hair·pin | \ ˈher-ˌpin

Kids Definition of hairpin

: a pin in the shape of a U for holding the hair in place

hairpin

noun

hair·pin | \ ˈha(ə)r-ˌpin, ˈhe(ə)r-

variants: also hairpin loop

Medical Definition of hairpin

: a region in single-stranded RNA or DNA that is double-stranded due to pairing between purine and pyrimidine bases in adjacent sequences of the RNA or DNA that are complementary and inverted