bristling 1 of 2

adjective

as in bristly

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bristling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of bristle
1
as in bursting
to be copiously supplied a recent college grad thrilled to be starting a new life in a city bristling with possibilities

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2
as in storming
to express one's anger usually violently the man bristled at the accusation, and threatened to file a lawsuit

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bristling
Adjective
That gives it a bristling relevance. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 13 Aug. 2025 Mason gives him a somewhat civilized welcome but has too much bristling nervous energy to be trusted. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Verb
El-Sayed and his allies are bristling at that tactic, since Obama has remained neutral in the Senate primary. — David Weigel, semafor.com, 15 July 2026 The irony, though — of companies building AI agents that can autonomously access users’ most sensitive data across multiple platforms while bristling at government scrutiny of the same technology — is difficult to miss. — Anisha Sircar, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026 Conservative Justices, bristling at insinuations of bias or partisanship, like to point to the significant share of cases that are decided unanimously. — Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 30 June 2026 The result is an album that retains the bristling energy of the band’s debut but yet feels refreshingly loose. — Jason P. Woodbury, Pitchfork, 22 June 2026 Young Washington, a new biopic, gives us pre-Revolutionary George, early-20s George, pale, petulant, virginal, ramrod-straight, and bristling with awkwardness and ambition. — James Parker, The Atlantic, 16 June 2026 Hollis buries herself in work in an attempt to escape her complicated grief, while aspiring filmmaker Caroline copes by making snarky remarks and bristling at her mom's efforts to connect. — Clarissa Cruz, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026 In the New Mexico desert, a pair of stations bristling with antennas captured radio waves coming out of a dozen separate lightning strikes. — Quanta Magazine, 6 May 2026 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth echoed the sentiment after bristling at a question from a CNN journalist during a Pentagon briefing last month on the Iran war. — Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bristling
  1. bristly
  2. bursting
  3. storming
  4. seething
  5. buzzing
  6. raging
  7. boiling
  8. bulging
Adjective
  • There are similarities between the two cities — hard-working people who can be bristly, but also kind and genuine.
    — James Pearce, New York Times, 20 July 2026
  • During the summer ski jumping season when competitors slide down ceramic or porcelain tracks and land on bristly plastic mats, the team tried to adjust to the new ski suit dimensions.
    — Brian Melley, Chicago Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
Definition of bristly
Verb
  • Murphy has built an empire by keeping a full-to-bursting pipeline of shows and returning to certain creative wells.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 8 Aug. 2026
  • The smell is rich, oceanic, and bursting with notes of lime and cilantro.
    — Megan Spurrell, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of bursting
Verb
  • That’s been the story of this third season, one that started with Rhaenyra storming the castle and taking the Iron Throne and then promptly saw her get picked apart by dozens of unforeseen calamities.
    — Brian Grubb, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Despite a 25% decline in gold from its high in January, proponents of the precious metal are storming into bullish call positions after almost two months of sideways action gives way to a rally Friday following weak jobs data.
    — Oliver Renick, CNBC, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of storming
Adjective
  • All were toothy, seething numbers, and all were terrifically fun.
    — Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork, 2 Aug. 2026
  • But after 90-plus minutes against Cape Verde on Sunday night at Hard Rock Stadium, the smiles turned to seething expressions and consternation.
    — Andre Fernandez, Miami Herald, 22 June 2026
Definition of seething
Verb
  • Discussion forums were buzzing, mining the multitude of horror movie references embedded in the series.
    — Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
  • For the last week or two there have been dozens and dozens of dragonflies buzzing around.
    — Joan Morris, Mercury News, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of buzzing
Verb
  • This bit is funny and scary — but not as funny and scary as a bit Knoxville would come up with two films later involving a raging bull.
    — Tim Grierson, Vulture, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images In late July, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang posted on X for the first time to defend open-source models in artificial intelligence, inserting himself into a debate that was raging across the industry.
    — Kif Leswing, CNBC, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of raging
Adjective
  • More humane methods of killing lobsters pre-boiling include a sharp knife through the head, electrical stunning, or freezing.
    — semafor.com, semafor.com, 29 Dec. 2025
  • Agrawal and her team studied ionic liquids — salts that are liquid at sub-boiling temperatures (below 212 degrees Fahrenheit, or 100 degrees Celsius) — as a potential hospitable environment for life.
    — Stefanie Waldek, Space.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Definition of boiling
Verb
  • Okegbe recommends immediately discarding any can that’s bulging, leaking, heavily rusted, or dented.
    — Jamie Cuccinelli, Martha Stewart, 26 July 2026
  • An aneurysm is a weakened or bulging artery wall, and coiling is a procedure used to block blood flow to the aneurysm, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
    — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 23 July 2026
Definition of bulging

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Cite this Entry

“Bristling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bristling. Accessed 17 Aug. 2026.

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