whisker

[ hwis-ker, wis- ]

/ ˈʰwɪs kər, ˈwɪs- /

noun

whiskers, a beard.

Usually whiskers. side whiskers.

a single hair of the beard.

Archaic. a mustache.

one of the long, stiff, bristly hairs growing about the mouth of certain animals, as the cat or rat; vibrissa.

Also called whisker boom, whisker pole. Nautical. any spar for extending the clew or clews of a sail so that it can catch more wind.

Radio, Electronics. cat whisker.

Crystallography. a thin filament of a crystal, usually several millimeters long and one to two microns in diameter, having unusually great strength.

Idioms for whisker

by a whisker, by the narrowest margin: She won the race by a whisker.

Origin of whisker

late Middle English word dating back to 1375–1425; see origin at whisk, -er¹

OTHER WORDS FROM whisker

whisk·er·y, adjective

Words nearby whisker

whirry, whish, whisht, whisk, whisk broom, whisker, whiskered, whiskery, whiskey, whiskey jack, whiskey rebellion

British Dictionary definitions for by-a-whisker

whisker

/ (ˈwɪskə) /

noun

any of the stiff sensory hairs growing on the face of a cat, rat, or other mammal Technical name: vibrissa

any of the hairs growing on a person's face, esp on the cheeks or chin

(plural) a beard or that part of it growing on the sides of the face

(plural) informal a moustache

Also called: whisker boom, whisker pole any light spar used for extending the clews of a sail, esp in light airs

chem a very fine filamentary crystal having greater strength than the bulk material since it is a single crystal. Such crystals often show unusual electrical properties

a person or thing that whisks

a narrow margin; a small distance he escaped death by a whisker

Idioms and Phrases with by-a-whisker

whisker

see by a hair (whisker); win by a nose (whisker).

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

whisker

noun

Idioms for whisker

Origin of whisker

OTHER WORDS FROM whisker

Words nearby whisker

British Dictionary definitions for by-a-whisker

noun

Idioms and Phrases with by-a-whisker

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

whisker

noun

Idioms for whisker

Origin of whisker

OTHER WORDS FROM whisker

Words nearby whisker

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noun

Idioms and Phrases with by-a-whisker

British Dictionary definitions for by-a-whisker