What is the term for the process of hair lightening?

The term for the process of hair lightening is bleaching. Bleaching involves using chemicals such as hydrogen peroxide or ammonia to strip the hair of its natural pigment, which results in a lighter shade. This process can significantly alter the hair color and is often a prerequisite for achieving lighter hues or for applying other colors on top.

While color stripping refers to removing artificial color from hair, it does not specifically mean lightening natural hair color. Highlighting involves applying lightener or color to selected strands of hair to create dimension, rather than universally lightening all the hair. Frosting is a technique that typically involves lightening the tips of hair strands, but again, it is not as comprehensive as the overall lightening achieved through bleaching.