Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun, plural chi·gnons [sheen-yonz, sheen-yuhnz; French shee-nyawn] /ˈʃin yɒnz, ʃinˈyʌnz; French ʃiˈnyɔ̃/.
- a large, smooth twist, roll, or knot of hair, worn by women at the nape of the neck or the back of the head.
noun
- an arrangement of long hair in a roll or knot at the back of the head
“knot or coil of hair worn at the back of the neck,” from French chignon “nape of the neck,” from Old French chaignon “iron collar, shackles, noose” (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *catenionem (nominative *catenio), from Latin catena “chain, fetter, restraint” (see chain (n.)). Popular 1780s, 1870s, 1940s. Form influenced in French by tignon “coil of hair.”