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B3R1I1S1T1L1E1

bristle

/ˈbɹɪsəl//ˈbɹʌsəl//ˈbɹɪstəl//ˈbɹɪs.ɫ/

noun

What it means

  1. A stiff or coarse hair on a nonhuman mammal or on a plant.

    the bristles of a pig

  2. A chaeta: an analogous filament on arthropods, annelids, or other animals.
  3. The hairs or other filaments that make up a brush, broom, or similar item, typically made from plant cellulose, animal hairs, or synthetic polymers.

In a sentence

the bristles of a pig

Where it comes from

  1. Proto-Indo-European*bʰr̥stís
  2. Proto-Germanic*burstiz
  3. Proto-West Germanic*bursti
  4. Proto-West Germanic*burstilu
  5. Old Englishbristl
  6. Middle Englishbristil
  7. Englishbristle

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”)).

First known use: 16th-early 20th c.

Full entry for bristle →

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