bristle

To rise or stand erect, like bristles.

To be on one's guard or raise one's defenses; to react with fear, suspicion, or distance.

To cause (someone) to be on one's guard or raise one's defenses.

To abound, to be covered with, or to have an abundance of, something, especially something jutting out.

(rare) To fix a bristle or bristles to.

(no longer used) To make (something) rise or stand erect, like bristles.

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

A chaeta: an analogous filament on arthropods, annelids, or other animals.

The hairs or other filaments that make up a brush, broom, or similar item, typically made from plant cellulose, animal hairs, or synthetic polymers.