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# hairball

noun (a hairball, hairballs)

«hairball» in the English dictionary: everyday — its meanings, how the lessons use it, and examples, each with its tree on Mova.

## Everyday

1. A ball of hair that forms in the stomach of an animal, especially a cat, after it licks its fur, and is then coughed up. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#m1)
2. (informal) A tangle of hair, for example in a hairbrush or plughole. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#m2)

### In the lessons

In pet care, cats swallow fur when they wash; brushing them helps prevent hairballs. Vets give advice if a cat has too many. In stories and cartoons, a cat coughing up a hairball is a common funny or gross moment.

### Examples

- The cat coughed up a hairball on the rug. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#x1)
- Brushing your cat helps stop hairballs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#x2)
- Long-haired cats get more hairballs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#x3)
- Dad pulled a huge hairball out of the shower drain. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#x4)
- The vet gave us food that reduces hairballs. [tree →](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/#x5)

### Note

One word. Countable. Not dangerous usually, but if a cat cannot bring one up, see a vet.

## On Mova

- [Trees and pragmatics of «hairball» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/H/hairball/): every meaning and example parsed by Mova, with its dependency tree and frames.
- [«hairball» in the school dictionary](https://mova.elamur.ai/free/en/dictionaries/school/w/hairball.html) on Mova free.