bristle
[bris-uh l]
- one of the short, stiff, coarse hairs of certain animals, especially hogs, used extensively in making brushes.
- anything resembling these hairs.
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- to stand or rise stiffly, like bristles.
- to erect the bristles, as an irritated animal (often followed by up): The hog bristled up.
- to become rigid with anger or irritation: The man bristled when I asked him to move.
- to be thickly set or filled with something suggestive of bristles: The plain bristled with bayonets. The project bristled with difficulties.
- to be visibly roused or stirred (usually followed by up).
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- to erect like bristles: The rooster bristled his crest.
- to furnish with a bristle or bristles.
- to make bristly.
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Origin of bristle
before 1000; Middle English bristel, equivalent to brist (Old English byrst bristle, cognate with German Borste, Old Norse burst) + -el diminutive suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for bristled
Contemporary Examples
Asked about the role he played, and the impact of his famous name, Goldwater bristled a bit.
And Kelley bristled at the notion that women were supposed to be offended by the video.
Rios Montt staunchly defended his actions against what he termed a deadly enemy, and bristled at the suggestion of genocide.
Cheri Young bristled in her stylish blue dress, her shoulder-length hair let loose from the ponytail of the day before.
According to network sources, Olbermann bristled at the amount of money being invested in his show.
Historical Examples
Pete bristled—as much as a fat man could bristle on so hot a day.
Good IndianB. M. Bower
She looked at White Fang, who snarled and bristled and glared malevolently.
White FangJack London
He bristled suspiciously, but the master warned him that all was well.
White FangJack London
As he bent his head carelessly to smell it, White Fang bristled slightly.
White FangJack London
As in the past he had bristled and snarled at sight of Lip-lip, so now, and automatically, he bristled and snarled.
White FangJack London
bristle
- any short stiff hair of an animal or plant
- something resembling these hairtoothbrush bristle
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- (when intr , often foll by up) to stand up or cause to stand up like bristlesthe angry cat's fur bristled
- (intr sometimes foll by up) to show anger, indignation, etcshe bristled at the suggestion
- (intr) to be thickly covered or setthe target bristled with arrows
- (intr) to be in a state of agitation or movementthe office was bristling with activity
- (tr) to provide with a bristle or bristles
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Word Origin
C13 bristil, brustel, from earlier brust, from Old English byrst; related to Old Norse burst, Old High German borst
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for bristled
bristle
n.
Old English byrst "bristle," with metathesis of -r-, from Proto-Germanic *bursti- (cf. Middle Dutch borstel, German borste), from PIE *bhrsti- from root *bhars- "point, bristle" (cf. Sanskrit bhrstih "point, spike"). With -el, diminutive suffix.
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bristle
v.
c.1200 (implied in past participle adjective bristled) "set or covered with bristles," from bristle (n.). Meaning "become angry or excited" is 1540s, from the way animals show fight. Related: Bristling.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper