Hair in Greek
μαλλιά
mallia — hair
Hear μαλλιά
Ask about hair in Greek and you ask in the plural. Μαλλιά (mallia) is what grows on a head, stressed ma-LIA, and Greeks treat it as a collection of many things rather than one mass. Έχει μακριά μαλλιά — she has long hair, literally long hairs.
The singular μαλλί exists but means wool. A jumper is πουλόβερ από μαλλί, and asking a hairdresser about your μαλλί rather than your μαλλιά will raise an eyebrow. For one individual strand the word is τρίχα.
At the hairdresser the useful pair is κούρεμα, a haircut, and βαφή, colouring. Θέλω ένα κούρεμα does the job, and Greeks add παρακαλώ far more readily than English speakers add please. Colours follow the plural too: ξανθά μαλλιά is blond, καστανά brown, μαύρα black.
Example sentences
Έχει μακριά μαλλιά.
Echei makria mallia.
She has long hair.
Θέλω ένα κούρεμα, παρακαλώ.
Thelo ena kourema, parakalo.
I would like a haircut, please.
Related forms
- μαλλί (malli) — wool — the singular means something else
- τρίχα (tricha) — a single hair
- κούρεμα (kourema) — a haircut
Common questions
- Why is hair plural in Greek?
- Greek counts the hairs rather than treating them as one substance, so μαλλιά is plural. The singular μαλλί means wool, and a single strand is a τρίχα.
Quick check
Pick the Greek word that matches.
How do you say "hair" in Greek?
Related words
Ask for what you need, in Greek
One word gets you pointed in the right direction — asking properly takes a little practice. Leave your email below and we’ll send you Greek lessons straight to your inbox, and get started with the Speak Greek course.