ringlet

Etymology

From ring + -let. Compare Middle English ryngyl, ryngyll, rengel (“ringlet”).

noun

1. A small ring.
2. A lock, tress.
   Her hair was in ringlets.
3. (entomology) Any of various butterflies with small rings on the wings, in the tribe Satyrini of the family Nymphalidae, such as Aphantopus hyperantus.

verb

1. (transitive) To form into ringlets.
   "It's very becoming!" said Pollie coaxingly, taking his curly head, which she had been brushing and ringleting for the last half hour, all damp, into her arms. 1877, Ella Farman, Good-for-nothing Polly, page 163
2. (transitive) To surround or encircle like a ringlet.