Etymologically
Log in

disheveled

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 04:12. This address is a permanent link to this version.
Changes in this edit History

Pronunciation

  • IPA: /dɪˈʃɛvəld/, /dɪsˈʃɛvəld/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English discheveled,[2][3][4][5] an alteration of dischevele “bare-headed, with disordered hair”,[3][4][6] borrowed from Old French deschevelé,[2][3][4][5] the past participle of descheveler “to disarrange the hair”,[2][3][4][5] from des- “apart” and chevel “hair”,[2][3][4] from Latin capillus (“hair”).[2][6][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Bare-headed or with unkempt hair (about 1380 for dischevele, about 1410 for discheveled).[3][4] Merriam-Webster dates the word to 1583.[6]

Semantic evolution

Originally the word was about hair: first a person with uncovered or untidy hair, then, from the mid-15th century, the hair itself hanging loose and in disorder.[4][3] From about 1600 it was used of disordered dress,[4] and today of anything untidy or in disarray.[2][6][5]

Timeline

  • c1380 – dischevele, with disarranged hair.[3][4]
  • c1410 – discheveled.[3]
  • mid-15th century – of the hair itself, hanging in disorder.[4]
  • c1600 – with disordered dress.[4]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. In loose disarray; unkempt, as hair or clothing.
  2. Marked by disorder; untidy.

Usage notes

The spelling dishevelled is usual in British English.[5][1]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  5. ^ a b c d e Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (1999), 2nd ed., New York: Random House
  6. ^ a b c d Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster