hairshirt UK /ˈhɛəʃɜːt/US /ˈhɛɹʃɝt/noun 2adjective 1forms 1 noun2 •A shirt made of haircloth; especially one worn by ascetics or the penitent. •(figurative) A state of penitence and humility.And when he went on to say, “The curse must be within ourselves,” Muir bequeathed us a hairshirt: the guilty conscience that plagues so many of us when we see what we are doing to the rest of nature. — 1981 adjective1 •Advocating or adopting a relatively ascetic lifestyle, especially for environmentalist reasons.The gloomy contentions of “hairshirt economists” who want more public and less private spending were assailed today by Robert W. Sarnoff, chairman of the National Broadcasting Company. — 1960 formshairshirts
