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Bristle

//ˈbɹɪsəl// name, noun, verb, slang

Definitions

Proper Noun

1
Bristol, England (in imitation of the local dialect) humorous, slang
"Correct Way to Speak Bristol."

Noun

1
A stiff or coarse hair on a nonhuman mammal or on a plant.
"the bristles of a pig"
2
a stiff hair wordnet
3
A chaeta: an analogous filament on arthropods, annelids, or other animals.
4
a stiff fiber (coarse hair or filament); natural or synthetic wordnet
5
The hairs or other filaments that make up a brush, broom, or similar item, typically made from plant cellulose, animal hairs, or synthetic polymers.

Verb

1
To rise or stand erect, like bristles. intransitive
"His hair began to bristle with anger when the subject was mentioned."
2
react in an offended or angry manner wordnet
3
To abound, to be covered with, or to have an abundance of, something, especially something jutting out. intransitive, usually
"the hill of La Haye Sainte bristling with ten thousand bayonets"
4
rise up as in fear wordnet
5
To be on one's guard or raise one's defenses; to react with fear, suspicion, or distance. intransitive, usually
"The employees bristled at the prospect of working through the holidays."

Show 5 more definitions

6
have or be thickly covered with or as if with bristles wordnet
7
To make (something) rise or stand erect, like bristles. archaic, obsolete, transitive
"The lion is let looſe inthe night, and the Earle hauing a night-gowne caſt ouer his ſhirt, with his girdle and ſword, and ſo comming downe the ſtaires into the court, meeteth with the lion briſtling his haire, and roaring."
8
be in a state of movement or action wordnet
9
To cause (someone) to be on one's guard or raise one's defenses. transitive, uncommon
"Your blatant attitude always bristles me."
10
To fix a bristle or bristles to. rare
"to bristle a thread"

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English bristil, bristel, brustel, from Old English bristl, byrst, *brystl, *byrstel, from Proto-West Germanic *burstilu, diminutive of Proto-West Germanic *bursti, from Proto-Germanic *burstiz (compare Dutch borstel, German Borste (“boar's bristle”), Icelandic burst), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰr̥stís (compare Middle Irish brostaid (“to goad, spur”), Latin fastīgium (“top”), Polish barszcz (“hogweed”)).

Etymology 2

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