Meaning
A metal comb heated on the stove or over the fire and drawn through the hair to straighten it — the traditional way of 'pressing' tightly-curled hair straight before chemical relaxers. Sitting between the knees of a mother or hairdresser to get your hair pressed with the hot comb, dreading the sizzle and the risk of a burnt ear, is a shared memory of Jamaican girlhood.
Examples
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Mumma press mi hair wid di hot comb pon Sunday.
Mum pressed my hair with the hot comb on Sunday.
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Mind di hot comb nuh bun yuh ear.
Mind the hot comb doesn't burn your ear.
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Dem heat di press comb pon di stove.
They heat the pressing comb on the stove.
Origin
From 'hot' + 'comb'; the stove-heated straightening comb ('press comb'). See [[relaxer]], [[tough-hair]].
How it’s used
A stove-heated comb for straightening ('pressing') hair. See [[relaxer]], [[tough-hair]].