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hack·le¹

(hăkəl)

1. Any of the long, slender, often glossy feathers on the neck of a bird, especially a male fowl.

2. hackles The erectile hairs along the back of the neck of an animal, especially of a dog.

3. A feather, usually from the neck of a chicken, used in trimming a fishing fly.

tr.v. hack·led, hack·ling, hack·les

To trim (an artificial fishing fly) with a hackle.

Idiom:

get (one's) hackles up

To be extremely insulted or irritated.

[Middle English hakell, cloak, skin, plumage, possibly from Old English hacele, cloak, mantle.]

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hackle1

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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