hackle

Noun

1. (countable, uncountable) An instrument with steel pins used to comb out flax or hemp.
2. (countable, in-plural, uncountable, usually) One of the long, narrow feathers on the neck of birds, most noticeable on the rooster.
3. (countable, uncountable) A feather used to make a fishing lure or a fishing lure incorporating a feather.
4. (countable, in-plural, uncountable, usually) By extension (because the hackles of a rooster are lifted when it is angry), the hair on the nape of the neck in dogs and other animals; also used figuratively for humans.
5. (countable, uncountable) A type of jagged crack extending inwards from the broken surface of a fractured material.
6. (countable, uncountable) A plate with rows of pointed needles used to blend or straighten hair.
7. (countable, uncountable) A feather plume on some soldier's uniforms, especially the hat or helmet.
8. (countable, uncountable) Any flimsy substance unspun, such as raw silk.
9. (slang, uncountable) Pluck; courage or energy.

Verb

1. To dress (flax or hemp) with a hackle; to prepare fibres of flax or hemp for spinning.
2. (transitive) To separate, as the coarse part of flax or hemp from the fine, by drawing it through the teeth of a hackle or hatchel.
3. (archaic, transitive) To tear asunder; to break into pieces.

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈhækəl/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: hakle

Inherited from Old English: hæcla

Cognate with Dutch: hekel

Cognate with German: Hechel

In summary

From Middle English hakle (compare the compound meshakele), from Old English hæcla, hacele, from Proto-Germanic *hakulǭ, equivalent to hack + -le. Cognate with Dutch hekel, German Hechel.

Synonyms

hatchel

comb

heckle

card

curry

🍛

cut

dress

👗

fell

hack

hash

#️⃣

mangle

saw

🪚

sawtooth

serrate

serration

sever

shear

slice

strip

tease

zigzag

comb wool

brush

saw-shaped

carve

chop

clip

Translations

pettinare

pettine

zerkleinern

mosca artificiale con penne

pelo del collo

penne lunghe del collo

rastrillar

hekel

rastrillo

munire di penne

ξαίνω

λαναρίζω

séran

Bürstenreinigungskamm

concasser