The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word RINGLETED
R
I
N
G
L
E
T
E
D
More clues leading to the result RINGLETED
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Curly-haired" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case curly-haired = ringleted.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does RINGLETED mean?
RINGLETED adjective- With the hair in ringlets.