hair
A1Neutral, used in all registers from formal to informal.
Definition
Meaning
The mass of thin thread-like structures that grow from the skin of humans and animals.
A single strand of this material; any fine, thread-like structure, such as on a plant or in machinery.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
Can be both countable (referring to individual strands) and uncountable (referring to the mass/collective). The plural 'hairs' refers to multiple individual strands.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Minimal lexical difference. Slight preference in AmE for 'bangs' vs BrE 'fringe' for front hair. The idiom 'let your hair down' is slightly more common in BrE.
Connotations
Similar in both dialects. Cultural associations with beauty, style, and identity are consistent.
Frequency
Extremely high and comparable frequency in both dialects.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
have + hair + (ADJ) (e.g., She has beautiful hair.)brush/wash/cut + (POSS) + hairhair + grow/fall outget/have + hair + doneVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “let your hair down”
- “split hairs”
- “a hair's breadth”
- “make your hair stand on end”
- “tear your hair out”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
In marketing for beauty products (e.g., 'targeting the hair care sector').
Academic
In biology/medicine (e.g., 'follicle structure', 'hair analysis in forensics').
Everyday
Overwhelmingly common in personal grooming, appearance, and social conversation.
Technical
In engineering/metrology (e.g., 'a hairline crack', 'accuracy to within a hair').
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- We need to hair the bow for the violin properly.
- (Rare/archaic: to remove hair from)
American English
- He'll hair the fishing fly with delicate precision.
- (Rare/technical)
adverb
British English
- (No standard adverbial use. 'Hair-thin' is a compound adjective.)
American English
- (No standard adverbial use. Phrases like 'hair-raising' are adjectives.)
adjective
British English
- The hair tonic is on sale.
- They found a hair ribbon.
American English
- She bought a new hair dryer.
- The hair sample was sent to the lab.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- I wash my hair every day.
- Her hair is brown.
- The cat has soft hair.
- He's going grey – he has a few white hairs.
- She had her hair cut short for the summer.
- There's a hair in my soup!
- Despite the stress, he didn't tear his hair out but found a calm solution.
- The gap was a mere hair's breadth, but the device wouldn't fit.
- The forensic analysis of a single hair follicle placed the suspect at the scene.
- Her critique was guilty of splitting hairs over minor inconsistencies in the report.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Imagine a HARE (rabbit) with very long, soft HAIR on its ears.
Conceptual Metaphor
HAIR IS A FABRIC/COVERING (e.g., 'a carpet of hair', 'a veil of hair'). THINNESS/PRECISION IS A HAIR (e.g., 'a hairline fracture', 'won by a hair').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid using 'hair' as a direct countable plural for the collective concept. In Russian 'волосы' is plural, leading to mistakes like 'My hairs are long.' Use the uncountable 'hair'.
- Remember 'волос' (singular strand) = 'a hair'; 'волосы' (collective) = 'hair'.
Common Mistakes
- Incorrect: 'She has a long hair.' (When referring to the collective mass, omit 'a') Correct: 'She has long hair.'
- Incorrect: 'I'm going to cut my hairs.' (For a haircut, use uncountable) Correct: 'I'm going to cut my hair.'
Practice
Quiz
Which sentence uses 'hair' correctly in its uncountable sense?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is both. Uncountable when referring to the mass on one's head (e.g., 'She has black hair'). Countable when referring to individual strands (e.g., 'I found two hairs on my pillow').
A hairdresser (or stylist) typically cuts and styles hair for all genders. A barber traditionally cuts men's hair, often focusing on shorter, classic styles and shaving.
Yes, it is common for mammals like dogs, cats, and horses. For some animals with very thick or woolly coats, specific words like 'fur', 'wool', or 'mane' are more precise, but 'hair' is still understood.
It means to make overly fine distinctions or argue about very small, unimportant details.
Collections
Part of a collection
Body and Health
A1 · 49 words · Parts of the body and basic health vocabulary.