Meaning & use
a barrette
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A small decorative clip that holds hair in place, often worn by children or on special occasions.
Grammar: Countable: one barrette, two barrettes. It is often used with the verb 'wear' or 'put in'.
Patterns
- wear a barrette
- put in a barrette
- a barrette in someone's hair
She wore a sparkly barrette on one side of her hair.
The little girl lost her favorite barrette at school.
He bought a barrette for his daughter's birthday.
Word forms
| plural | barrettes |
|---|
Common combinations
- wear a barrette
- She likes to wear a barrette when her hair is long.
- put in a barrette
- Can you put in a barrette to keep your hair out of your eyes?
- sparkly barrette
- The sparkly barrette matched her dress.
- hair barrette
- He gave her a silver hair barrette.
Synonyms and how they differ
- hair clip
- A general term for any clip that holds hair; 'barrette' is more specific and often decorative.
- hair slide
- Common in British English; it can be similar to a barrette but sometimes refers to a slide that pushes hair back.
Commonly confused: a barrette or barret?
a barrette vs barret
A 'barret' is a type of cap or hat, not a hair clip. The spelling is different.
Practice
What do you call a small clip that holds your hair in place?
Choose one answer.
A barrette is a hair clip. A bracelet is jewelry for the wrist; a beret is a soft round hat; a barret is a type of cap.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “a barrette”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.