feathers - Definitions from Dictionary.com

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

plug and feathers

–noun

an apparatus for splitting stone, consisting of two tapered bars (feathers), inserted into a hole drilled into the stone, between which a narrow wedge (plug) is hammered to spread them.

[Origin: 1835–45

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
feathers

To learn more about feathers visit Britannica.com

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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

feath·er Audio Help (fěth'ər) Pronunciation Key

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n.

One of the light, flat growths forming the plumage of birds, consisting of numerous slender, closely arranged parallel barbs forming a vane on either side of a horny, tapering, partly hollow shaft.
feathers Plumage.
feathers Clothing; attire.
A feathery tuft or fringe of hair, as on the legs or tail of some dogs.
Character, kind, or nature: Birds of a feather flock together.
Something small, trivial, or inconsequential.
1. A strip, wedge, or flange used as a strengthening part.
2. A wedge or key that fits into a groove to make a joint.
The vane of an arrow.
A feather-shaped flaw, as in a precious stone.
The wake made by a submarine's periscope.
The act of feathering the blade of an oar in rowing.

v. feath·ered, feath·er·ing, feath·ers

v. tr.

To cover, dress, or decorate with or as if with feathers.
To fit (an arrow) with a feather.
1. To thin, reduce, or fringe the edge of by cutting, shaving, or wearing away.
2. To shorten and taper (hair) by cutting and thinning.
3. To alter the pitch of (a propeller) so that the chords of the blades are parallel with the line of flight.
4. To alter the pitch of (the rotor of a helicoptor) while in forward flight.
To connect with a tongue-and-groove joint.
To turn (an oar blade) almost horizontal as it is carried back after each stroke.
1. To alter the pitch of (a propeller) so that the chords of the blades are parallel with the line of flight.
2. To alter the pitch of (the rotor of a helicoptor) while in forward flight.
To turn off (an aircraft engine) while in flight.

v. intr.

To grow feathers or become feathered.
To move, spread, or grow in a manner suggestive of feathers.
To feather an oar.
To feather a propeller.

[Middle English fether, from Old English; see pet- in Indo-European roots.]

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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

The American Heritage Science Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

feather Audio Help (fě

'ər) Pronunciation Key

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One of the light, flat structures that cover the skin of birds. A feather is made of a horny substance and has a narrow, hollow shaft bearing flat vanes formed of many parallel barbs. The barbs of outer feathers are formed of even smaller structures (called barbules) that interlock. The barbs of down feathers do not interlock. Evolutionarily, feathers are modified scales, first seen in certain dinosaurs.

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