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bristle

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bris⋅tle

  [bris-uhl] noun, verb, -tled, -tling.
Use bristle in a Sentence
–noun
1. one of the short, stiff, coarse hairs of certain animals, esp. hogs, used extensively in making brushes.
2. anything resembling these hairs.
–verb (used without object)
3. to stand or rise stiffly, like bristles.
4. to erect the bristles, as an irritated animal (often fol. by up): The hog bristled up.
5. to become rigid with anger or irritation: The man bristled when I asked him to move.
6. to be thickly set or filled with something suggestive of bristles: The plain bristled with bayonets. The project bristled with difficulties.
7. to be visibly roused or stirred (usually fol. by up).
–verb (used with object)
8. to erect like bristles: The rooster bristled his crest.
9. to furnish with a bristle or bristles.
10. to make bristly.
Origin:
bef. 1000; ME bristel, equiv. to brist (OE byrst bristle, c. G Borste, ON burst) + -el dim. suffix

Related forms:
bris⋅tle⋅less, adjective
bris⋅tle⋅like, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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bris·tle   (brĭs'əl)   
n.  

  1. A stiff hair.

  2. A stiff hairlike structure: the bristles of a wire brush.

v.   bris·tled, bris·tling, bris·tles

v.   intr.

  1. To stand stiffly on end like bristles: The hair on the dog's neck bristled.

  2. To raise the bristles: The cat bristled at the sight of the large dog.

  3. To react in an angry or offended manner: The author bristled at the suggestion of plagiarism.

  4. To be covered or thick with or as if with bristles: The path bristled with thorns.

v.   tr.

  1. To cause to stand erect like bristles; stiffen.

  2. To furnish or supply with bristles.

  3. To make bristly; ruffle.


[Middle English bristel, probably from Old English *byrstel, from byrst, bristle.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

bristle 
O.E. byrst "bristles," with metathesis of -r-, from P.Gmc. *bors- (cf. M.Du. borstel), from PIE *bhrsti- from base *bhar- "point, bristle" (cf. Skt. bhrstih "point, spike"). With -el, dim. suffix. The verb "become angry or excited" is 1549, from the way animals show fight.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Medical Dictionary

Main Entry: bris·tle
Pronunciation: 'bris-&l
Function: noun
: a short stiff coarse hair or filament
Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, © 2002 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
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