hair shirts

noun

plural of hair shirt
as in headaches
something that is a source of irritation the constant need to cut costs was a hair shirt, but one that the theater company had to live with

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hair shirts
  1. headaches
  2. thorns
  3. frustrations
  4. nuisances
Noun
  • What hurt wasn’t just inheriting the customer-service headaches or paying my own phone bill for the first time at 27.
    — Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN Money, 1 Aug. 2026
  • These are identified by painful headaches accompanied by light and sound sensitivity.
    — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 30 July 2026
Definition of headaches
Noun
  • Blackthorn salt was filtered through something called a tower of thorns.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 July 2026
  • According to Fried, songbirds especially like this tree’s fruit, which is reminiscent of blackberries but without the seeds or thorns.
    — SJ McShane, Martha Stewart, 18 July 2026
Definition of thorns
Noun
  • While the frustrations of Ellison; his father, Larry Ellison, the Oracle billionaire and deal backer; and others in the Paramount camp have taken center stage in recent days, WBD also faces a difficult path.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 24 July 2026
  • Whether that happens before the season begins remains to be seen, but James’ decision to sign elsewhere was like tearing a Band-Aid off a fanbase’s long-simmering frustrations about a lackluster offseason.
    — Nick Friedell, New York Times, 24 July 2026
Definition of frustrations
Noun
  • Some of the houses are abandoned and have become unsightly neighborhood nuisances.
    — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 29 July 2026
  • Of course, the list of invertebrates include mosquitoes, gnats, yellow flies, ticks and other biting pests, which are most annoying June through August but can be nuisances at other times of the year.
    — Charles Seabrook, AJC.com, 25 July 2026
Definition of nuisances
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

hair shirt
hair shirts
hairsplitter
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Cite this Entry

“Hair shirts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hair%20shirts. Accessed 2 Aug. 2026.

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