ruffle

ruffle

ruffle¹ [ruf′əl]

vt.

ruffled, ruffling [ME ruffelen < ON or MLowG, as in LowG, ON hrufla, to scratch]

1. to take away the smoothness of; wrinkle; ripple [wind ruffling the water]

2. to gather into ruffles

3. to put ruffles on as trimming

4. to make (feathers, etc.) stand up in or as in a ruff, as a bird when frightened

5. to disturb, irritate, or annoy

6. to turn over (the pages of a book, etc.) rapidly

vi.

1. to become uneven, wrinkled, etc.

2. to become disturbed, irritated, etc.

n.

1. a strip of cloth, lace, etc., gathered in pleats and puckers and used for trimming

2. something like this, as a bird's ruff

3. a disturbance; irritation

4. a break in surface smoothness; ripple

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ruffle feathers or ruffle someone's feathers

Informal to disturb, irritate, or annoy (someone)

ruffly

adj.

rufflier, ruffliest

ruffle² [ruf′əl]

n.

[also earlier ruff, prob. echoic]

a low, continuous beating of a drum, not so loud as a roll

vi., vt.

ruffled, ruffling

to beat (a drum, etc.) with a ruffle