care for the hair

II. comb2 BrE AmE verb [transitive]
1. to make hair look tidy using a comb:
Melanie ran upstairs to comb her hair.
2. to search a place thoroughly
comb something for somebody/something
Police are still combing the woods for the missing boy.
comb something ↔ out phrasal verb
to use a comb to make untidy hair look smooth and tidy:
She sat combing out her hair in front of the kitchen mirror.
comb through something phrasal verb
to search through a lot of objects or information in order to find a specific thing or piece of information:
We spent weeks combing through huge piles of old documents.

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

verb
1. transitive ~ sth to pull a comb through your hair in order to make it neat
• Don't forget to comb your hair!

• Her hair was neatly combed back.

2. transitive, intransitive to search sth carefully in order to find sb/sth
Syn: scour
• ~ sth I combed the shops looking for something to wear.
• ~ sth for sb/sth The police combed the area for clues.

• ~ through sth (for sb/sth) They combed through the files for evidence of fraud.

3. transitive ~ sth (technical) to make wool, cotton, etc. clean and straight using a special comb so that it can be used to make cloth
Verb forms:

Word Origin:
Old English camb, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch kam and German Kamm.
Example Bank:
• Don't forget to comb your hair.

• His hair was neatly combed back.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

comb / kəʊm / / koʊm / verb [ T ] (TIDY HAIR)

B1 to tidy your hair using a comb:
She combed her hair and put on some lipstick.
I've been trying to comb out (= remove using a comb) the knots in her hair.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition

comb / kəʊm / / koʊm / verb [ T ] (SEARCH)

to search a place or an area very carefully in order to find something:
The police combed the whole area for evidence.
Investigators combed through the wreckage.

Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary

2) VERB When you comb your hair, you tidy it using a comb.
  [V n] Salvatore combed his hair carefully...
  [V-ed] Her reddish hair was cut short and neatly combed.
3) VERB If you comb a place, you search everywhere in it in order to find someone or something.
  [V n for n] Officers combed the woods for the murder weapon...
  [V n] They fanned out and carefully combed the temple grounds.
4) VERB If you comb through information, you look at it very carefully in order to find something.
  [V through n] Eight policemen then spent two years combing through the evidence.
5) → See also fine-tooth comb

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary

Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary:

comb

²comb verb combs; combed; comb·ing
1 [+ obj] : to smooth, arrange, or separate (hair or fibers) with a comb
• Go comb your hair.
• He combed back his hair.
• The wool is combed before being spun into yarn.
2 : to search (something) very thoroughly in order to find something

[+ obj]

• We combed the beach for shells.

[no obj]

- usually + through
• They got the information by combing through old records.
comb out [phrasal verb] comb out (hair) or comb (hair) out : to make (hair) neat and smooth with a comb
• She sat in front of the mirror combing out her hair.
• Her mother combed the tangles out.