Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Hair
Hair
(hâr)
, Noun.
[OE.
her
, heer
, hær
, AS. hǣr
; akin to OFries. hēr
, D. & G. haar
, OHG. & Icel. hār
, Dan. haar
, Sw. hår
; cf. Lith. kasa
.] 1.
The collection or mass of filaments growing from the skin of an animal, and forming a covering for a part of the head or for any part or the whole of the body.
2.
One the above-mentioned filaments, consisting, in vertebrate animals, of a long, tubular part which is free and flexible, and a bulbous root imbedded in the skin.
Then read he me how Sampson lost his
hairs
. Chaucer.
And draweth new delights with hoary
hairs
. Spenser.
3.
Hair (human or animal) used for various purposes;
as,
. hair
for stuffing cushions4.
(Zool.)
A slender outgrowth from the chitinous cuticle of insects, spiders, crustaceans, and other invertebrates. Such hairs are totally unlike those of vertebrates in structure, composition, and mode of growth.
5.
(Bot.)
An outgrowth of the epidermis, consisting of one or of several cells, whether pointed, hooked, knobbed, or stellated. Internal hairs occur in the flower stalk of the yellow frog lily (
Nuphar
). 6.
A spring device used in a hair-trigger firearm.
7.
A haircloth.
[Obs.]
Chaucer.
8.
Any very small distance, or degree; a hairbreadth.
☞ Hairs is often used adjectively or in combination; as, hairbrush or hair brush, hair dye, hair oil, hairpin, hair powder, a brush, a dye, etc., for the hair.
Against the hair
, in a rough and disagreeable manner; against the grain.
[Obs.]
“You go against the hair of your professions.” Shak.
– Hair bracket
(Ship Carp.)
, a molding which comes in at the back of, or runs aft from, the figurehead.
– Hair cells
(Anat.)
, cells with hairlike processes in the sensory epithelium of certain parts of the internal ear.
– Hair compass
, Hair divider
a compass or divider capable of delicate adjustment by means of a screw.
– Hair glove
, a glove of horsehair for rubbing the skin.
– Hair lace
, a netted fillet for tying up the hair of the head.
Swift.
– Hair line
, a line made of hair; a very slender line.
– Hair moth
(Zool.)
, any moth which destroys goods made of hair, esp.
– Tinea biselliella
. Hair pencil
, a brush or pencil made of fine hair, for painting; – generally called by the name of the hair used;
– as, a camel’s
hair pencil
, a sable's hair pencil
, etc. Hair plate
, an iron plate forming the back of the hearth of a bloomery fire.
– Hair powder
, a white perfumed powder, as of flour or starch, formerly much used for sprinkling on the hair of the head, or on wigs.
– Hair seal
(Zool.)
, any one of several species of eared seals which do not produce fur; a sea lion.
– Hair seating
, haircloth for seats of chairs, etc.
– Hair shirt
, a shirt, or a band for the loins, made of horsehair, and worn as a penance.
– Hair sieve
, a strainer with a haircloth bottom.
– Hair snake
. See
– Gordius
. Hair space
(Printing)
, the thinnest metal space used in lines of type.
– Hair stroke
, a delicate stroke in writing.
– Hair trigger
, a trigger so constructed as to discharge a firearm by a very slight pressure, as by the touch of a hair.
Farrow.
– Not worth a hair
, of no value.
– To a hair
, with the nicest distinction.
– To split hairs
, to make distinctions of useless nicety.
Webster 1828 Edition
Hair
HAIR
, n.1.
A small filament issuing from the skin of an animal, and from a bulbous root. Each filament contains a tube or hollow within, occupied by a pulp or pith, which is intended for its nutrition,and extends only to that part which is in a state of growth.When hair means a single filament,it has a plural,hairs.
2.
The collection or mass of filaments growing from the skin of an animal, and forming an integument or covering; as the hair of the head. Hair is the common covering of many beasts. When the filaments are very fine and short, the collection of them is called fur. Wool, also, is a kind of hair. When hair signifies a collection of these animal filaments, it has no plural.3.
Any thing very small or fine; or a very small distance; the breadth of a hair. He judges to a hair, that is, very exactly.4.
A trifling value. It is not worth a hair.5.
Course; order; grain; the hair falling in a certain direction. [Not used.] You go against the hair of your profession.
6.
Long, straight and distinct filaments on the surface of plants; a species of down or pubescence.Definition 2024
hair
hair
See also: haïr
English
Hair in low gravity.
Noun
hair (countable and uncountable, plural hairs) (but usually in singular)
- (countable) A pigmented filament of keratin which grows from a follicle on the skin of humans and other mammals.
- (Can we date this quote?) Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1343-1400):
- Then read he me how Sampson lost his hairs.
- (Can we date this quote?) Edmund Spenser (c.1552–1599):
- And draweth new delights with hoary hairs.
- (Can we date this quote?) Geoffrey Chaucer (c.1343-1400):
- (uncountable) The collection or mass of such growths growing from the skin of humans and animals, and forming a covering for a part of the head or for any part or the whole body.
- In the western world, women usually have long hair while men usually have short hair.
- 1900, Charles W. Chesnutt, The House Behind the Cedars, Chapter I:
- Her abundant hair, of a dark and glossy brown, was neatly plaited and coiled above an ivory column that rose straight from a pair of gently sloping shoulders, clearly outlined beneath the light muslin frock that covered them.
- (zoology, countable) A slender outgrowth from the chitinous cuticle of insects, spiders, crustaceans, and other invertebrates. Such hairs are totally unlike those of vertebrates in structure, composition, and mode of growth.
- (botany, countable) A cellular outgrowth of the epidermis, consisting of one or of several cells, whether pointed, hooked, knobbed, or stellated.
- Internal hairs occur in the flower stalk of the yellow frog lily (Nuphar).
- (obsolete) Haircloth; a hair shirt.
- c. 1390, Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Second Nun's Tale", The Canterbury Tales:
- She, ful devout and humble in hir corage, / Under hir robe of gold, that sat ful faire, / Hadde next hir flessh yclad hir in an haire.
- 1485, Sir Thomas Malory, chapter ij, in Le Morte Darthur, book XV:
- Thenne vpon the morne whanne the good man had songe his masse / thenne they buryed the dede man / Thenne syr launcelot sayd / fader what shalle I do / Now sayd the good man / I requyre yow take this hayre that was this holy mans and putte it nexte thy skynne / and it shalle preuaylle the gretely
- c. 1390, Geoffrey Chaucer, "The Second Nun's Tale", The Canterbury Tales:
- (countable) Any very small distance, or degree; a hairbreadth.
- Just a little louder please—turn that knob a hair to the right.
Usage notes
The word hair is usually used without article in singular number when it refers to all the hairs on one's head in general. But if it refers to more than one hair, a few hairs, then it takes the plural form without an article, and needs a plural verb.
- George has (-) brown hair, but I found a hair on the sofa and suspect he's getting some gray hairs.
- George's hair is brown, but one hair I found was grey, so I think there are probably more grey hairs on his head as well.
Adjectives often applied to "hair": long, short, curly, straight, dark, blonde, black, brown, red, blue, green, purple, coarse, fine, healthy, damaged, beautiful, perfect, natural, dyed.
Derived terms
Terms derived from hair
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Related terms
Translations
a pigmented keratinaceous growth on the human head
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the collection or mass of filaments growing from the skin of humans and animals
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one of the above-mentioned filaments
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Statistics
Anagrams
Irish
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /haɾʲ/
Verb
hair
- h-prothesized form of air
Noun
hair
- h-prothesized form of air
Old French
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Frankish *hatjan.
Verb
hair
- to hate
Conjugation
This verb conjugates as a third-group verb. This verb has a stressed present stem he distinct from the unstressed stem ha, as well as other irregularities. Old French conjugation varies significantly by date and by region. The following conjugation should be treated as a guide.
Conjugation of hair (see also Appendix:Old French verbs)
| simple | compound | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| infinitive | hair | avoir haï | |||||
| gerund | en haant | Use the gerund of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| present participle | haant | ||||||
| past participle | haï | ||||||
| person | singular | plural | |||||
| first | second | third | first | second | third | ||
| indicative | jo | tu | il | nos | vos | il | |
| simple tenses |
present | haz, hé | hez | het | haons | haez | héent |
| imperfect | haoie, haeie | haoies, haeies | haoit, haeit | haïiens, haïens | haïiez, haïez | haoient, haeient | |
| preterite | haï | haïs | haï | haïmes | haïstes | haïrent | |
| future | harrai, harai | harras, haras | harra, hara | harrons, harons | harroiz, harreiz, harrez, haroiz, hareiz, harez | harront, haront | |
| conditional | harroie, harreie, haroie, hareie | harroies, harreies, haroies, hareies | harroit, harreit, haroit, hareit | harriiens, harriens, hariiens, hariens | harriiez, harriez, hariiez, hariez | harroient, harreient, haroient, hareient | |
| compound tenses |
present perfect | Use the present tense of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | Use the imperfect tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| past anterior | Use the preterite tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| future perfect | Use the future tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| conditional perfect | Use the conditional tense of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| subjunctive | que jo | que tu | qu’il | que nos | que vos | qu’il | |
| simple tenses |
present | hace, hée | haces, hées | hace, hée | haciens, haçons, haons | haciez, haez | hacent, héent |
| imperfect | haïsse | haïsses | haïst | haïssons, haïssiens | haïssoiz, haïssez, haïssiez | haïssent | |
| compound tenses |
past | Use the present subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | |||||
| pluperfect | Use the imperfect subjunctive of avoir followed by the past participle | ||||||
| imperative | – | tu | – | nos | vos | – | |
| — | hé | — | haons | haez | — | ||