curled; curling; curls
1
: to form into coils or ringlets
curl one's hair
2
: to form into a curved shape : twist
curled his lip in a sneer
3
: to furnish with curls
1
: a lock of hair that coils : ringlet
2
: something having a spiral or winding form : coil
4
: a curved or spiral marking in the grain of wood
5
: a hollow arch of water formed when the crest of a breaking wave spills forward
6
: a usually short pass pattern in football in which a receiver runs downfield and then curves back toward the line of scrimmage
7
: a body-building exercise in which a weight held with the palms facing up is raised and lowered by flexing only the wrists or elbows
Examples of curl in a Sentence
Verb
She curls her hair every morning.
Can you curl your tongue?
The baby's fingers were tightly curled.
The snake curled itself around its prey.
The cat curled into a ball and went to sleep.
We saw smoke curling from the cottage chimney.
A snake curled around his leg.
Noun
Her daughter has cute blonde curls.
She likes to wear her hair in curls.
The conditioner will help you keep the curl of your hair.
His hair has a natural curl.
He did 12 wrist curls.
Recent Examples on the Web
Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 22 July 2025
When the sun comes out, so does the French curl braiding hair.
—Ranyechi Udemezue, Vogue, 22 July 2025
Larry Stansbury, Essence, 18 July 2025
Celebs have truly embraced all shades of red in 2025, including Megan's pal Keke Palmer, who has been all about copper, auburn, and strawberry hues, and SZA, who performed at the Super Bowl Halftime Show with rich, deep auburn curls.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 15 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for curl
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Verb
Cyrus pulled her dark brown tresses into the half-up, half-down hairdo, leaving her short, thick fringe flat against her forehead while longer side pieces curled in front of her ears.
—Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 22 July 2025
When the sun comes out, so does the French curl braiding hair.
—Ranyechi Udemezue, Vogue, 22 July 2025
Noun
Wendy pulled up to the release party for Janet Jackson’s Damita Jo album in strawberry blonde curls, army green eyeshadow, pink highlighter, and a sheer, glossy lip.
—Larry Stansbury, Essence, 18 July 2025
Celebs have truly embraced all shades of red in 2025, including Megan's pal Keke Palmer, who has been all about copper, auburn, and strawberry hues, and SZA, who performed at the Super Bowl Halftime Show with rich, deep auburn curls.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 15 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for curl
Cite this Entry
“Curl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/curl. Accessed 29 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
curl
1 of 2 verb1
: to form into or grow in coils or ringlets
curled her hair
2
: to take or move in a curved form
smoke curling from the chimney
Biographical Definition
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