bristletail

noun

bris·​tle·​tail ˈbri-səl-ˌtāl How to pronounce bristletail (audio)
: any of various primitive wingless insects (order Thysanura synonym Archaeognatha) with three slender caudal bristles

Examples of bristletail in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Insects use many other classes of ion channel olfactory receptors, including ones that are much more complex and much more specific than those of the jumping bristletail. Jordana Cepelewicz, Wired, 27 June 2021 The Rockefeller team turned to receptor interactions in the jumping bristletail, an ancestral ground-dwelling insect that has a particularly simple olfactory receptor system. Jordana Cepelewicz, Wired, 27 June 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bristletail.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1706, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bristletail was in 1706

Dictionary Entries Near bristletail

Cite this Entry

“Bristletail.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bristletail. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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