whisker Hear it!

whisker definition

whisker (hwiskər, wis-)

noun

    1. Archaic a mustache
    2. the hair growing on a man's face; esp., the beard on the cheeks
    1. a hair of a man's beard
    2. any of the long, bristly hairs growing on each side of the upper lip of a cat, rat, etc.; vibrissa
  1. a very small, hairlike, single-crystal filament of high tensile strength, grown on certain metals, alloys, crystals, etc. and serving to reinforce the material
  2. a very small amount or margin to lose an election by a whisker
  3. Naut. either of two spars extending laterally one on each side of the bowsprit, for spreading the jib and flying jib guys

Etymology: ME wisker, something used for whisking: see whisk & -er

Related Forms:

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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