MEANING
1. To show sudden irritation or resentment at a remark or action.
2. To stand upright like stiff hairs, or be filled with projecting or forceful things.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- bristle at criticism
- bristle with indignation
On the page
The director bristled at the suggestion that the review was biased.
Nearby words
Word forms
- Base
- bristle
- Past tense
- bristled
- Past participle
- bristled
- Present participle
- bristling
Full tense & aspect guide
- Present
- bristle
- Present continuous
- am/is/are bristling
- Present perfect
- have/has bristled
- Present perfect continuous
- have/has been bristling
- Past
- bristled
- Past continuous
- was/were bristling
- Past perfect
- had bristled
- Past perfect continuous
- had been bristling
- Future
- will bristle
- Future continuous
- will be bristling
- Future perfect
- will have bristled
- Future perfect continuous
- will have been bristling
Choose the auxiliary that agrees with your subject. These are constructions of one word, not separate entries.
Usage notes
Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: bristle; bristles; bristled; bristled; bristling Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Commonness: moderately common. Third-person singular: bristles.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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