Hairball

Hairball
A wad of swallowed hair. Hairballs can sometimes be found to cause blockage of the digestive system, especially at the exit of the stomach. Interestingly, in the Far East culture, hairballs are felt to have medicinal properties! Also called a trichobezoar.

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n.

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hair·ball (hārґbawl) trichobezoar.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • hairball — hair ball , hair ball hair ball (h[^a]r b[e^]l ), n. a compact mass of hair that forms in the stomach of animals as a result of licking fur; as, the cat coughed up a hairball right on the new rug. [WordNet sense 1 + 2] [WordNet 1.5] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • hairball — (n.) 1712, from HAIR (Cf. hair) + BALL (Cf. ball) (n.1) …   Etymology dictionary

  • hairball — ► NOUN ▪ a ball of hair which collects in the stomach of an animal as a result of the animal licking its coat …   English terms dictionary

  • hairball — [her′bôl΄] n. a rounded mass of hair that may form in the stomach or intestines of a cow, cat, or other animal that licks its coat …   English World dictionary

  • Hairball — A hairball is a small collection of hair or fur formed in the stomach of animals that is occasionally vomited up when it becomes too big. Hairballs are primarily a tight elongated cylinder of packed fur, but may include bits of vomit or recently… …   Wikipedia

  • hairball — 1. AND furball n. an obnoxious person. □ I wish that the guys I date didn’t always turn out to be hairballs. □ Stop being such a furball, Wally. 2. exclam. How awful! (Usually Hairball! An exclamation of disgust. From the name of the undigested… …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

  • hairball — noun a) A small wad of fur or mass of hair formed in the digestive system of a cat or other animal, from hair ingested while grooming. The contract negotiations are turning into a real hairball. b) A messy, tangled …   Wiktionary

  • hairball — /hair bawl /, n. a ball of hair accumulated in the stomach or intestines of a cat or other animal as a result of the animal s licking its coat. [1705 15; HAIR + BALL1] * * * also called  furball        gastrointestinal obstruction occurring in… …   Universalium

  • hairball — n American an unpleasant and/or despicable per son, by analogy with something vomited by a cat. The phrase owes its usage from the 1980s partly to the fact that, while offensive, it is not obscene and can therefore be used in television dramas… …   Contemporary slang

  • hairball — n. mass of hair found in the stomach of a cat or other animal …   English contemporary dictionary

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