ˈbris(ə)lē, -li adjective
( -er/-est )
1.
a. : consisting of or like bristles
a horse with a short bristly mane
a bristly brown mustache — S.H.Adams
frowning bristly brows — Lucy M. Montgomery
b. : thickly set with bristles
a bristly skin
a bristly shrub
2. : tending to bristle easily : belligerent
a man with a bristly temperament
this aura of bristly independence — Time