bristle
/ˈbrɪs(ə)l
/noun (usually bristles)
1A short, stiff hair on an animal’s skin or a man’s face.I haven't shaved for the day, so short bristles of my beard pepper my chin....
- His lip, covered with short bristles, quavered slightly.
- Golden bristles stubbled his cheeks and jaw and his hair needed a quick comb.
Synonyms
hair, whisker;
(bristles) stubble, designer stubble, five o'clock shadow
technical seta
1.1A stiff animal hair, or a man-made substitute, used to make a brush: a toothbrush with nylon bristles [mass noun]: the heads are made with natural bristle...
- Try a brush with synthetic bristles, not natural ones.
- Flip your head back up then smooth the top layer of your hair with a natural bristle brush.
- Start by using a soft boar's head brush or similar natural bristle brush on your hair.
Synonyms
prickle, spine, quill, thorn, barb
verb [no object]
1(Of hair or fur) stand upright away from the skin, typically as a sign of anger or fear: the hair on the back of his neck bristled...
- She stood with her fur bristling as she watched a form race across the hills towards them.
- Elanor was peering in the doorway, her fur bristling.
- Ayane shot up to a sitting position, back ramrod-straight and fur bristling.
Synonyms
rise, stand up, stand on end
literary horripilate
1.1(Of an animal) react in such a way that its hair or fur stands on end: the cat bristled in annoyance...
- The tall, dark stranger strode towards Alita as the wolf bristled and growled.
- But in the corner the ape was bristling, and a certain point he snapped.
- The cats sat right on the door frame, tensely bristling at the world beyond.
1.2(Of a person) react angrily or defensively: she bristled at his rudeness...
- There was a subtle change in Adair towards defensive and Tristin stared at her as she almost bristled at him.
- At a press conference, the foreign secretary bristled at the suggestion he would be taking a message to New Delhi.
- Her lawyers bristled at suggestions there may be no other willing witnesses to bring.
Synonyms
get angry, become infuriated, be furious, be maddened, bridle, become indignant, be irritated, get/have one's hackles up, feel one's hackles rise, rear up, draw oneself up, flare up, see red;
take offence, take umbrage;
be defensive
2 (bristle with) Be covered with or abundant in: the roof bristled with antennae...
- They bristled with weapons and were covered from head to foot in thick armor.
- In the beginning, the area had been crawling with soldiers and bristling with guns.
- It's nondescript, faceless - yet bristling with hubris.
Synonyms
abound, swarm, teem, crawl, overflow, hum, be alive, be packed, be crowded, be thronged, be jammed, be infested, be full, be covered
informal be thick, be crawling, be lousy, be stuffed, be jam-packed, be chock-a-block, be chock-full
Origin
Middle English: from Old English byrst (of Germanic origin, related to German Borste) + -le1.
Rhymes
- Pasternak, Boris
- pasterned
- pastern joint
- paste-up
- Pasteur effect
- Pasteurella
- pasteurellosis
- Pasteur flask
- Pasteurian
- pasteurise
- Pasteurism
- pasteurization
- pasteurize
- pasteurizer
- Pasteur, Louis
- Pasteur pipette
- Pasteur reaction
- Pasteur treatment
- paste wash
- paste water
- past future
- past historic
- pasticceria
- pasticcio
- pastiche