tousle

or tou·zle

[ tou-zuhl ]

verb (used with object)

, tou·sled, tou·sling.

1. to disorder or dishevel:

   The wind tousled our hair.

2. to handle roughly.

noun

1. a disheveled or rumpled mass, especially of hair.
2. a disordered, disheveled, or tangled condition.

tousle

/ ˈtaʊzəl /

verb

1. to tangle, ruffle, or disarrange
2. to treat roughly

noun

1. a disorderly, tangled, or rumpled state
2. a dishevelled or disordered mass, esp of hair

Word History and Origins

Origin of tousle¹

1400–50; late Middle English touselen (v.); cognate with Low German tūseln. See touse, -le

Word History and Origins

Origin of tousle¹

C15: from Low German tūsen to shake; related to Old High German zirzūsōn to tear to pieces

Example Sentences

"You tousle its mane and pull its ears, but all the time you’re thinking, those claws, those claws, those claws."

From BBC

He had been famous since he was a teenager and a sex symbol for just as long, a tousled Californian with a movie star smile.

From Salon

She hadn’t brought it along to brush his tousled curls.

From Literature

Mr. Brown’s tousled hair and gravelly voice have spoken to working-class voters since he was elected Ohio’s secretary of state in 1982.

From New York Times

The 1920s had found a superstar, who with her tousled hair, leather jacket, scarf and khakis, buoyed the world through the Depression.

From Los Angeles Times