dreadlocks
Syllables: dread·locks/ˈdɹɛdlɒks/US/ˈdɹɛdˌlɑks/
dreadlocks noun: a hairstyle worn by Rastafarians and others in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into matted strings. Also the third-person singular simple present indicative of dreadlock.
Noun
dreadlocks pl (normally plural, singular dreadlock)
- A hairstyle worn by Rastafarians and others in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into matted strings.
- The patient history may point to the use of tight hairstyles that put tension on the hair root or hair treatments that increase the vulnerability to traction-related damage. The physician should evaluate for a history of tight ponytails, buns, chignons, braids, twists, weaves, cornrows, dreadlocks...2021, Oma N. Agbai, Jodie Raffi, “Hair Loss in Women of Color”, in Becky S. Li, Howard I. Maibach, editors, Ethnic Skin and Hair and Other Cultural Considerations (Updates in Clinical Dermatology)...
Also used as
dreadlocks is also the third-person singular simple present indicative of dreadlock.
dreadlocks meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Urdu and Bengali
dreadlocks in Hindi
- hairstyle in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into long matted strings
- जटा jaṭā
dreadlocks in Tamil
- hairstyle in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into long matted strings
- சடாமுடி caṭāmuṭi
dreadlocks in Urdu
- hairstyle in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into long matted strings
- جٹا jaṭā
dreadlocks in Bengali
- hairstyle in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into long matted strings
- জটা jṭa
More languagesFewer languages
- dreadlocks in Gujarati
- જટા jaṭā
- dreadlocks in Sanskrit
- जटा jaṭā
- dreadlocks in Malay
- rambut gimbal, rambut pilinan
- dreadlocks in Indonesian
- gimbal
Synonyms of dreadlocks
Forms of dreadlocks
| singular | dreadlock |
|---|
Origin of dreadlocks
Borrowed from Jamaican Creole dreadlocks, from dread (“of or relating to a dread”, adjective) (from dread (“(usually black) male member of the Rastafarian movement who wears his hair in dreadlocks”, noun), from English dread (“reverential or respectful fear; awe”), referring to the awe inspired by God) + English locks (plural of lock (“length or tuft of hair”)). The English word is analyzable as dread (“Rastafarian”, attributive) + locks.
Words formed from dreadlocks
Questions about dreadlocks
- What does dreadlocks mean?
- Dreadlocks means a hairstyle worn by Rastafarians and others in which the hair is left to grow long, and twisted into matted strings.
- What is dreadlocks in Hindi?
- Dreadlocks in Hindi is जटा (jaṭā). See Dreadlocks meaning in Hindi.
- What part of speech is dreadlocks?
- Dreadlocks is a noun.
- How do you pronounce dreadlocks?
- Dreadlocks is pronounced /ˈdɹɛdlɒks/ (UK).
Words near dreadlocks in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: dreadlocks (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-dreadlocks.wav.
Cite this entry: “dreadlocks.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/dreadlocks. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.