髪(かみ)を乾(かわ)かす

Formed from 髪(かみ) ('hair [of the head]') + を + 乾(かわ)かす ('to dry [something]'). Note the transitive/intransitive pair: 乾(かわ)く means 'to become dry,' 乾(かわ)かす means 'to make something dry' — the latter takes a direct object marked with を.

Usage

• Covers drying with a towel, a hair dryer, or simply by letting time pass; the means can be specified with で (e.g., タオルで, ドライヤーで).
• Does not inherently imply styling — for that, 髪(かみ)をセットする or 髪(かみ)をスタイリングする are used.

Common collocations

• ドライヤーで髪(かみ)を乾(かわ)かす: blow-dry one's hair with a hair dryer
• タオルで髪(かみ)を乾(かわ)かす: towel-dry one's hair
• 自然(しぜん)に髪(かみ)を乾(かわ)かす: let one's hair air-dry
• 髪(かみ)をよく乾(かわ)かす: dry one's hair thoroughly

Related words

• 髪(かみ)を洗(あら)う: to wash one's hair
• 髪(かみ)をとかす: to comb one's hair
• 髪(かみ)を切(き)る: to cut one's hair / get a haircut
• 洗濯物(せんたくもの)を乾(かわ)かす: to dry laundry — same verb used for other objects

Transitivity

• 乾(かわ)かす is transitive (requires an object + を).
• 乾(かわ)く is the intransitive pair: 髪(かみ)が乾(かわ)いた ('my hair has dried').
• Learners sometimes mistakenly say 髪(かみ)を乾(かわ)く; the correct transitive form is 乾(かわ)かす.