Words / B2

BAHB-uh/ˈbɑːbə/

A barber is a person whose job is to cut men’s hair and, often, to shave them: a barber’s shop; barber in the photograph. Hairdresser is the broader twin, often for all clients; haircutter is plain. The barber in the photograph is a source, not a brand. Mix-up: barber vs Barbara; harbour. Do not write barber for a surgeon in a modern hospital source (the old “barber-surgeon” is history).

Meaning

A person whose job is to cut men’s hair and, often, to shave them.

Examples

• “The barber in the photograph is a source, not a brand; still name the street if given.”
• “A barber-surgeon featured in the early-modern extract, which is the history sense.”

Good to know

a barber; a barber’s (shop); barber-surgeon (history). Broader: hairdresser. Trap: harbour. History, citizenship, and media. A person who cuts men’s hair — treat the photo as a source.

Near in meaning

hairdresser, haircutter

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