as in headache
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of hair shirt
Four years later, an America-first cultural crackdown has freed the Met to cast off the hair shirt of reckoning and celebrate its diverse holdings in a spirit of defiance.
—
Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 30 June 2025
In an area that used to produce influential Catholic churchmen the way the Dodgers churned out Rookies of the Year, Gomez has amounted to the living equivalent of a hair shirt: a mode of piety that serves no one but the wearer.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Erin Maglaque’s review of a new book on women and sound in Renaissance Italy peels back the layers of a less-talked about form of religious asceticism and control, one where there are no hair shirts or decade-long fasts, just… silence.
—Michelle Weber, Longreads, 15 Nov. 2024
Talking about wedding vows was like donning a hair shirt.
—Leslie Jamison, The New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2024
The novel aesthetic of Art Nouveau wrapped modernism in the garb of pleasure, instead of in the hair shirt of social obligation and moral uplift.
—Regina Cole, Forbes, 1 Jan. 2023
Few people’s utopia involves wearing a hair shirt and giving up culinary pleasures; utopia and sacrifice are, for many, antonyms.
—Jan Dutkiewicz, The New Republic, 20 Oct. 2022
Julian Lucas, New Yorker, 30 June 2025
In an area that used to produce influential Catholic churchmen the way the Dodgers churned out Rookies of the Year, Gomez has amounted to the living equivalent of a hair shirt: a mode of piety that serves no one but the wearer.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 19 June 2025
Erin Maglaque’s review of a new book on women and sound in Renaissance Italy peels back the layers of a less-talked about form of religious asceticism and control, one where there are no hair shirts or decade-long fasts, just… silence.
—Michelle Weber, Longreads, 15 Nov. 2024
Talking about wedding vows was like donning a hair shirt.
—Leslie Jamison, The New Yorker, 15 Jan. 2024
The novel aesthetic of Art Nouveau wrapped modernism in the garb of pleasure, instead of in the hair shirt of social obligation and moral uplift.
—Regina Cole, Forbes, 1 Jan. 2023
Few people’s utopia involves wearing a hair shirt and giving up culinary pleasures; utopia and sacrifice are, for many, antonyms.
—Jan Dutkiewicz, The New Republic, 20 Oct. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hair shirt
Noun
-
Major industry groups including the American Petroleum Institute have not fought to kill the federal endangerment finding, because a patchwork of state laws could ultimately replace it — leading to legal headaches and a raft of nuisance lawsuits against them, experts said.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Gone are the days of worrying that your vitamins or headache medication accidentally spilled all over the bottom of the bag; this style has two layers of defense.—
Lydia Mansel,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The move came days after Gail Slater, the Justice Department’s antitrust chief, was bounced from her job, reportedly after becoming a thorn in the side of some business interests.—
Meg James,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The group was a thorn in the side of Fidel Castro, and the Castro Brothers took action.—
Hank Tester,
CBS News,
24 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Broadway was also found to have violated probation on three occasions, stemming from his conviction on a Level 6 felony of maintaining a common nuisance and drug possession from his arrest in June 2024.—
Jim Woods,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Excessively loud vehicles has become a common nuisance across Austin, but a group of West Austin neighbors have pushed the city to take action.—
Austin Sanders,
Austin American Statesman,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
There are different reasons a person might want to scream, whether they have been told to stay silent about abuse experienced as a child, or have been dismissed or ignored as an adult, or are struggling with a political landscape that has exacerbated feelings of fear, anger and frustration.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Hudson described the frustration of being pigeonholed by an industry that struggled to see her outside the genre.—
Ryan Brennan,
Charlotte Observer,
24 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
While many retirees focus on market crashes or poor investment returns as their biggest worry, financial experts warn that the slow, steady rise in the cost of living may actually pose a greater danger — one that can stretch across decades and leave retirees struggling to keep up.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Hufnagel addressed those worries, saying that 2026 is focused on optimizing the footprint through sharper assortments and marketing to support full-price sell-through and sustainable long-term growth.—
Stephen Garner,
Footwear News,
26 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hair shirt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hair%20shirt. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
