barbicel

[bahr-buh-sel]

noun Ornithology.

one of the minute processes fringing the barbules of certain feathers.

Origin of barbicel

1865–70; < New Latin barbicella, equivalent to Latin barbi- (combining form of barba beard) + -cella diminutive suffix

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

British Dictionary definitions for barbicel

barbicel

noun

ornithol any of the minute hooks on the barbules of feathers that interlock with those of adjacent barbules

Word Origin for barbicel

C19: from New Latin barbicella, literally: a small beard, from Latin barba beard

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012