dark-haired

dark-haired — adjective

1. having hair that is brown, black, or a similarly dark colour — used to describe

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

having hair that is brown, black, or a similarly dark colour — used to describe a person's appearance, especially when you want to distinguish them from someone with light-coloured hair.

Example

The dark-haired woman at the counter helped Iris find the right size.

attributive: dark-haired + noun

Both of Madison's brothers are dark-haired, but she got her mother's blonde hair.

predicative: be + dark-haired

Common collocations
  • tall and dark-haired
  • dark-haired woman
  • dark-haired man
  • dark-haired stranger
  • young and dark-haired
Synonyms
  • brunette

    used almost exclusively for women with brown hair; not common for men or black hair

  • dark

    shorter and informal; can also describe skin tone or eye colour, so less precise

  • raven-haired

    poetic or literary term for very black, glossy hair; unusual in everyday speech

Antonyms
  • fair-haired

    describes a person with pale yellow or light-brown hair

  • blonde

    specifically yellow or very light brown hair, usually of women

Grammar Patterns

dark-haired + noun (attributive)

be + dark-haired (predicative)

Usage Note

Used almost always of people, not animals. For animals, 'dark-furred' or simply 'black' sounds more natural. In predicative position (e.g. 'she is dark-haired'), the hyphen is usually retained. The compound is neutral in register — suitable for both casual conversation and formal descriptions.

Common Mistakes

She is a dark hair girl.
She is a dark-haired girl.
'hair' is a plain noun; the compound adjective needs the '-ed' suffix plus hyphen.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

All four expressions describe a dark appearance but differ in scope and usage. 'Brunette' is the closest in meaning to 'dark-haired' but is strongly gendered — used almost exclusively of women and girls — and typically implies brown rather than black hair. 'Dark' is a casual, all-purpose adjective that can refer to hair, skin, or eye colour; it saves a syllable but sacrifices precision. 'Raven-haired' is a literary term for very black, glossy hair; it would sound unnatural in a police report or everyday conversation. 'Dark-complexioned' is often confused with 'dark-haired' — it refers to skin tone, not hair colour. In most contexts, 'dark-haired' is the safest, most neutral choice for describing someone with brown or black hair, regardless of gender or register.

brunette ↗dark ↗raven-haireddark-complexioned

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • tall and dark-haired
  • dark-haired and handsome
  • young and dark-haired

Etymology

Old EnglishMiddle EnglishEnglish

Formed in English from 'dark' (Old English 'deorc', meaning without light) and 'haired' (from 'hair', Old English 'hǣr', plus the adjectival suffix '-ed', meaning 'having hair'). The compound has been in use since at least the 1600s to describe a person's hair colour.