bristly

adjective

bris·​tly ˈbris-lē 

ˈbri-sə-

bristlier; bristliest

1

a

: thickly set with bristles

a bristly shrub

b

: consisting of or resembling bristles

a bristly mustache

2

: inclined to or showing aggressiveness or anger

a bristly temperament

Synonyms

• brushy
• cottony
• fleecy
• furred
• furry
• hairy
• hirsute
• rough
• shaggy
• silky
• unshorn
• woolly
• wooly

Examples of bristly in a Sentence

although pigs look hairless, they're actually bristly creatures

Recent Examples on the Web

Step 3: Tidy the Harvest When the garlic is fully cured with papery skins and brittle, brown leaves, brush away any excess soil with your fingers and clip back the bristly roots. —Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2024

The authors dutifully report that each pappus, the bristly head of a seed, contains 100 rod-like filaments on average, each about 7.4 mm long and 16.3 μm thick. —Bill Andrews, Discover Magazine, 18 Oct. 2018

Hedgehogs are small mammals, known for their coats, which are covered with bristly spines. —Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2021

Like farmers tilling and watering their fields, the yeti crab dutifully tends its crop by waving its bristly arms. —Elizabeth Preston, Discover Magazine, 2 Dec. 2011

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a