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Webster 1913 Edition
Vibrissa
‖
Vi-bris′sa
,Noun.
pl.
Vibrissae
(#)
. [L.
vibrissae
, pl., the hairs in the nostrils of man, fr. vibrare
to vibrate; – so called because touching them tickles a person, and causes him to shake his head.] 1.
(Anat.)
One of the specialized or tactile hairs which grow about the nostrils, or on other parts of the face, in many animals, as the so-called whiskers of the cat, and the hairs of the nostrils of man.
2.
(Zool.)
The bristlelike feathers near the mouth of many birds.