A blue-hair is an older woman, so named because of the hair tint that such ladies sometimes use to remove a yellow cast to their gray hair. This article was originally published by Ground Up, @GroundUp_News. To miss the boat: to come too late for something; to let an opportunity go because of inattention or lack of time. Beyonc recently released her newest visual album, "Black Is King," on Disney Plus. The fluorescent lights reflected off Bills scalp, which peeked through scraggly salt-and-pepper hair flecked with dandruff. Study people on the street and in shopping malls. This one means to take action when needed. Maybe shes a hard-working businesswoman with no time to make a salon appointment; or perhaps shes a harried mother who cant afford a dye job because of a financial crisis in the family. - the hair has only one layer, this means it is very light; it is very delicate just like that one of a young child, this hair cannot be able to stand straight on the head. Bills balding, scraggly, dandruff-flecked salt-and-pepper hair barely covered his scalp, which reflected the fluorescent lights and made him look decades older than his professed age of thirty years. In the news, journalists often refer to the Pentagon when talking about the U.S. military. Think of people youve met. Her hair was as black as coal. on the path to systematic vocabulary improvement. Required fields are marked *. The literal meaning of "My black face fades" is that the author Yusef Komunyakaa is black and the memorial is made out of black granite, so his face blend into the . But this is a metaphor which suggests that Alex is a coward, or frightened. Vocabulary.com can put you or your class b) Find an example of how the sea is represented in poetry or a song. In the following narrative, Dr. Jesus Lau shares his experiences and history with hair. In what sounds like a speculative etymology, Wiktionary suggests that "The word conjures the image of two bald-headed men putting their heads together in an effort to solve a problem.". Here are some examples: A trial by fire: To try something in a real-life setting without testing it first. sandstorm blowing. Read: South Africa: Education authorities to launch an inquiry into racial discrimination at Pretoria Girls High. ammonia, antiseptic, apples, an ashtray, a bakery, bar vomit, beer, blackberries, bleach, car exhaust, cheap perfume, cigarettes, cigars, citrus, cotton candy, D to J The four types of metaphor are simple, implied, extended, and literary. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like simile, metaphor, simile and more. He had been expecting her to turn up a supreme vision of loveliness in a pretty dress, looking fresh and clean, and smelling of roses. It is also known as a poetic, literary, novel, or unconventional metaphor, such as: "Her tall black-suited body seemed to carve its way through the crowded room." Josephine Hart, "Damage" "Fear is a slinking cat I find / Beneath the lilacs of my mind." Sophie Tunnell, "Fear" When the social worker tells me Its a girl my heart always drops a little further:threelittle words that are a clear indicator of the sexual, emotional, psychological and racial stereotyping that lies ahead. Gray-haired, white-haired, and grizzled all refer to hair color, and by implication, age. In contrast, lowbrow suggests lack of sophistication or breeding. To get out of hand: to become out of control. Dead metaphors are also sometimes called clichs. Hopefully the above generated list of words to describe black hair suits your needs. Likewise with the hair or fur of gender-identified pets and animals. Herding cats: a way of describing a situation that is difficult or frustrating. The devaluing of African physical features, including hair, skin and features, is the reason little Thandekathinks she is not beautiful. There are three types of texture that you will have to dwell on in your descriptions; these are the thick texture, the medium texture, and the fine texture. Phrases for Hair Movement. He had to be at least fifty. Metaphors are often used to describe love and other intense emotions. The Red-Haired One may belong to the Thoracic type whether his hair is blonde or brunette or any of the shades between, but it is an interesting fact that most of the red-haired are largely of this type. Grey hairs are no reproof, and we are quite sure they would harmonize better with the other marks of age than the wigs and fronts which prevail. This eight-year-old girl will continue to believe that her natural hair is not normal, that it needs to be changed to fit the standard of beauty set by some white person on TV. Are You Interested in More Word Lists and Writing Tips? I chatted to some of the older girls from the community centre and discovered a hair hierarchy that is worse that I anticipated. This comparison creates a vivid image in the mind. According to the algorithm that drives this website, the top 5 adjectives for "black hair" are: uniformly brilliant, nicely textured, lustrous and thick, smooth but thick, and thickly lustrous. As you know, there is more to language than putting parts of speech together in a way that makes sense. Read: South Africa: Twitter reacts to Pretoria Girls racist hair rules. To show up means to be there when it counts. These are metaphors that occur so much in the language that they no longer create an image. Relax and enjoy your creative journey . This is because they create a vivid image in the mind. . The hairstyle could be dreadlocks on African American hair, natural afro Hair common in black women, cute hairstyles with short hair, box braids, crochet braids, pixie cut, plaited, ponytail, permed hair, French braids, Dutch braids (read our posts on the different inFrench and Dutch braidsandhistory of European braids). They both serve the same purpose in English, so why are they separate ideas? No it doesn't necessarily mean that you came from a black background. Sign up for our weekly newsletters and get: By signing in, you agree to our Terms and Conditions Sorin Ostafiev / Moment Open / Getty Images. You should note that only accurate descriptions will communicate the intended message. It should be released by the end of the month if all goes well. Jean-Paul Z Bella: the cunning Cameroonian soldier who became a global musiclegend, Upcoming Netflix series spotlights legendary African matriarchs, AKA: slain South African rapper was a once-in-a-generation pop culture sensation, Nigeria and South Africa triumph at the 2023 Grammys, Beyonc is going on a world tour. For describing hair color, one tip is to look at hair dye colors for ideas too. Metaphors should create an impact on the reader. These books will provide the tools. You should also note the colors of the hair, they are different. They are used to inspire and help people understand the importance of something. Hair is perhaps the clue to, the salvation of the early mammals. How can she recognise her power and worth when everything around her reminds her that she is right at the bottom? Will Nigerias next president answer to the public? simile. (1969). Play ball is a metaphor used at the beginning of baseball games. Lets try rewording it. With so many ways to describe hair, you can definitely use related terms to help readers get a clearer picture of the individual you are writing about. One was that neckbeards are men who are stereotypically associated with computers, whether as gamers or as programmerswhich is to say, it describes people I've known. A homeless persons mane might be unkempt, with patchy straggles that smell like mold or trash. What about replacing it with nouns from this list? I usually post two to five times monthly, and you can discontinue your subscription at any time. Youre building castles in the air: youre making unrealistic plans. Her eyes shone like blue stars, and her hair shonethere must be pounds of it, Billy thoughtand her very shoulders, plump, flawless, ineffable, shone with the glow of an errant cloud-tatter that is just past the track of dawn, and is therefore neither pink nor white, but manages somehow to combine the best points of both colours. Her hair was like the threads of gold. English for Beginners: Intensive Spoken English Course, How to Teach Metaphors: 60 Metaphor Examples for Kids, Simile and Metaphor Examples: When and Where to Use Them, Extended Metaphor Examples from Literature, The Best Way to Learn English Fast: 20 Tips for Learning English, Descriptive Adjectives for Creative Writing, Examples of Cause and Effect: Write Better Sentences and Essays, English Grammar 101: The 8 Parts of Speech, American English Pronunciation: Basic Vowel and Consonant Rules. The second reason was more purely linguistic: the term neckbeard uses a style of grooming as shorthand (or synecdoche) to tell us something about the person. There's also just plain beard in the sense of a disguisea person who acts as a front for someone else. Q. 2. Time to cut the Pinocchio strings. 5. The Big Bang is a metaphor used to describe how the universe came to be. cut, half crown, Harvard clip, hime cut, hi-top fade, induction cut, Ivy League, Jheri curl, layered, liberty spike, marcel waves, military cut, mod cut, mop-top, mullet, O and P Q. B. hyperbole. Jamela's hair was smooth as silk after getting it straightened at the hair salon. It comes somewhere between Kroes Kop and Boesman., I dont know how to describe it. Paul Mashatile is set to become South Africas deputy president: what he brings to the table, 5th Anniversary of the final forced deportations of the indigenous people of the Chagos Archipelago, South African women innovators win big at international Falling Walls Lab, New research: Cancer drug with potential to be used against malaria, Africa in space: continent has a lot to gain, but proper plans must be put in place. Notify me of follow-up comments by email. The sickening stench of cigar smoke wafted from what I quickly realized was a poorly constructed toupee. What upset me the most was how the cataract of white privilege obscured some peoples vision so badly they were unable to see how this was racist, how this is not just about Black hair. Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh. Do your characters nod or roll their eyes like marionettes? He wears his heart on his sleeve: he shows his feelings readily. You must find great phrases to convey a person's hair movement and hairstyle to a reader. In fact, some metaphors are so old that we dont even think of them as metaphors anymore! Helenas voluminous champagne curls cascaded over white shoulders, wafting a delicate aroma of honeysuckle into the sitting room as she swished in my direction. Black hair hierarchy is a metaphor for life, Kenya Film Classification Board (KFCB) continues discriminatory ban on queer content, South Africa has a new traditional courts bill. Metaphors describing Darkness Related: Darkness Symbolism 1. One theory, proposed by cognitive linguists George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, is that metaphors are a cognitive tool allowing people to comprehend what they cannot see, taste, hear, smell or touch.. Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summers lease hath all too short a date; (from Sonnet 18). Implied . This eight-year-old girl will continue to believe that her natural hair is not normal, that it needs to be changed to fit the standard of beauty set by some white person on TV. Perhaps a cold-blooded assassin or serial killer? Like a hard sponge., Ha ha, its like a duck. Same man, same basic description. Now can you explain Lily Tomlins quote about hair? His hair grew in thick black waves with tiny spirals at the nape, like the springs in ballpoint pens. A Dictionary of Similes. The Darkness is a Veil Perhaps the most common darkness metaphor, this one relates darkness to the concept of having something pulled down over your eyes. afro, beehive, Bettie Paige, Bieber cut, blunt cut, bob cut, bouffant, bowl cut, braided, brush cut, bun, burr, butch cut, buzz cut, C black twisty yarn She has curly hair or she have curly hair? Shakespeare employs a metaphor when the narrator says, "If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head." He compares her hair to wires, rather than flatter her by comparing it to something more . Speaker, I smell a rat. It devastated me. scorched, scraggly, severe, shaggy, shimmery, shiny, short, shoulder-length, silky, singed, slicked-back, slimy, sparse, spiky, springy, stiff, straggly, straight, straightened, streaked, sweaty T to W teased, thick, thin, trimmed, uneven, unkempt, untamed, velvety, voluminous, wavy, wet, windswept, wild, wiry, wispy Color Similarly, Downing Street and the Elyse describe centers of executive power in the U.K. and France respectively. Is your character priggish? Note: Although blond can describe the hair of either males or females, many writers prefer blond for males and blonde for females. But the two senses are united in that they refer to people whose hair style is a symbol of interests outside the mainstream. thanks! metaphor: She is the apple of her dad's eye. Describing hair in words is not easy for a reader without a picture. Mense (people) must not know its natural state., I dont know anyone without a hair straightener. The theme of this poem, through the speaker, gives us a peek into one of the most difficult phases a person can face in a lifetime. With so many textures, styles, lengths, and colors, it can be difficult to find exactly the right terms. Say What You Mean: Synonyms for Strong Writing, What's Old Is New Again: The Roots of "Novel". Here are some examples of famous literary metaphors: A school is a factory is a poem is a prison is academia is boredom, with flashes of panic. Joseph Brodsky, Less Than One, Emily Dickinson, Hope is The Thing With Feathers, The smuggler is something of a poet. The crocodile's teeth were daggers, ready to chomp down on a meal. He has worked at Microsoft and Amazon, and currently works at Tableau Software. 128 Metaphors for hair They may be made of horse hair or moss; but hair is the best. teased, thick, thin, trimmed, uneven, unkempt, untamed, velvety, voluminous, wavy, wet, windswept, wild, wiry, wispy. If she is not comfortable in her skin, her body, her hair it is our fault. Whether the individuals hair is messy due to a lack of care, general unruliness, or having been engaged in activity that caused it to become messy, choose the right word so readers will understand. This means to make sure to consider all possible outcomes. This got me to wondering whether there are other metaphoric meanings based on tonsorial characteristics. Here are some examples of extended metaphors: Literary metaphors are generally used to provide strong imagery for poetic purposes. But perhaps I've just been reading the wrong material. The film is designed as a companion piece to "The Gift," which Beyonc curated to correspond with her role as Nala in Disney's 2019 "The Lion King" remake.The hour-long project took more than one year to film, in a variety of locations worldwide such as Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa, New York, California, and . It can also be related to the activity, whether natural hair movement or movement due to dancing. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Your email address will not be published. B to W The magic of Southern speech is in the similes and metaphors and other allusions. There are 373 other words to describe black hair listed above. The guards decide that hair is the best means of distinguishing white people from Black. Is curly hair hereditary? If truth is beauty, how come no one has their hair done in the library?. Hair damaged by over-perming wont sway; it might ruffle, snarl, or tangle. The opening poem of the anthology, this poem is an eight-year-old's . This began as a guide to describing Afro/curly hair but of course, I got carried away. Its showtime: its time to start (something important). Q. There is a fourth category, dead metaphors, which can cause the speaker to create something called a mixed metaphor. Cut me some slack! 6 years ago. Calling someone a neckbeard or an egghead or a longhair or a bottle blondwell, these are not intended to be flattering descriptions. But this self-describing definition is not why the term was added. We have failed her. If you havent done so already, please subscribe to my blog. When that happens, we call them clichs. Comes from the Middle Ages, a time when people thought that courage came from the liver. Curls might bounce, coil, or twist. An orphanage manager narrates the difficulty of raising confident young black and coloured girls an a world that constantly tells them 'white is right'. But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?