barber chair
- noun
- /ˈbɑːrbər tʃɛr/
- Maybe you'd like to step down out of the barber chair and maybe we can go outside and discuss it.
- sit in a barber chair
OK, so I'm in a Barber chair.
- OK, so I'm in a Barber chair.
Examples
-
Continued pull back reveals that he is in a barber chair.
Fiction book (1994) -
He eases himself out of the barber chair.
Fiction book (2002) -
There was an empty barber chair.
Fiction book (1993) -
I know it sounds turgid, but I have a barber chair in my study.
-
His arm feels numb and lies limp on the arm of the barber chair.
Fiction book (1996) -
The living room was furnished with vintage barber chairs bolted to the floor in a rough pentagon.
Fiction book (1996) -
Chili and Tommy each sit in a barber chair, reading the newspaper while Fred and Ed sit nearby playing checkers.
Fiction book (1995) -
He stood at the barber chair stropping his straight razor and doing it very rhythmically.
Fiction book (1993) -
CAMERA TRACKS OFF a clock on a wall - REVEALS WALKER in a barber chair.
Fiction book (1998) -
The barber adjusted the barber chair to ensure the customer was comfortable during the haircut.
Synonyms
A seat for one person with a back and legs
How Comfortable
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning ('a chair used in a barbershop') is directly and compositionally derived from 'barber' (person who cuts hair) + 'chair' (a seat). This noun+noun modifier pattern (agent/tool or purpose) is common cross-linguistically and follows a straightforward semantic relation, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Barber chair comes from the special chair used by a barber in his shop. Because these chairs can turn, lean back and have a headrest and footrest to make cutting hair or shaving easier, barber chair now means 'a chair used for haircuts and shaves'.