/ ˈfeðə(r); NAmE / noun , verb
■ noun
one of the many soft light parts covering a bird's body :
a peacock feather
a feather pillow (= one containing feathers)
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IDIOMS
- a feather in your cap
—more at bird , knock verb , ruffle verb , smooth verb
■ verb
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IDIOMS
- feather your (own) nest
—more at tar verb
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English fether , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch veer and German Feder , from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit patra wing, Latin penna feather, and Greek pteron , pterux wing.