hairball

IPA/ˈheə.bɔːl/
IPA/ˈher.bɑːl/

hairball — noun

  • hairballsingular
  • hairballsplural

1. a clump of fur that collects inside the stomach of a cat or other animal when it

1.nounB2
Definition

a clump of fur that collects inside the stomach of a cat or other animal when it licks and swallows loose hair while cleaning itself, and which the animal sometimes brings up through its mouth

Example

Nora's cat coughed up a hairball on the living room rug yesterday morning.

cough up a hairball — common verb collocation

The vet told Eitan that long-haired cats get more hairballs than short-haired ones.

long-haired cat + get hairballs — typical subject pattern

Common collocations
  • cough up a hairball
  • bring up a hairball
  • vomit a hairball
  • prevent hairballs
  • reduce hairballs
  • get hairballs
  • have hairballs
  • hairball problem
  • hairball remedy
  • hairball control food
Synonyms
  • fur ball

    less formal; more common in casual conversation than hairball

  • trichobezoar

    medical term used by veterinarians; very formal and technical

Grammar Patterns

hairball + verb (cough up, bring up, vomit)

verb + a hairball

Usage Note

Typically used in the context of cats, though other grooming animals (rabbits, ferrets) can also develop them. The verb phrase cough up a hairball is the most common collocation.

Common Mistakes

My dog has a hairball from licking its fur.
My cat has a hairball from grooming itself.
Hairballs are most strongly associated with cats, not dogs, though technically possible in any fur-licking animal.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Hairball is the everyday word used by pet owners and veterinarians when talking about the clump of fur a cat brings up. Fur ball is a less formal, slightly playful alternative — you might say 'My cat left a fur ball on the rug' in casual conversation, but a vet would rarely use it in a clinical note. Trichobezoar is the strict medical term from Greek roots (tricho- = hair, bezoar = mass found in the gut); you would only see it in veterinary textbooks or medical charts. For daily use with a cat owner, hairball is the natural choice. For example: 'Take your cat to the vet if it coughs up a hairball more than once a week' sounds normal, but using trichobezoar in that sentence would sound out of place.

hairball ↗fur balltrichobezoar

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • cough up a hairball
  • bring up a hairball
  • hairball problem
  • hairball remedy

Etymology

Old EnglishEnglish

Hairball is a compound word formed from hair (Old English hǣr, meaning 'a strand growing from the skin') and ball (Old English beallu, meaning 'a round object'). The term has been used since the late 1800s to describe the clump of swallowed fur found in the stomachs of cats and other grooming animals. It replaced the older, more technical term trichobezoar as the everyday word.

First known use

1712

1712, in the meaning defined above