Feathered

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Displaying a light and airy quality akin to that of bird plumage
2. Having a soft and fluffy appearance reminiscent of a bird's plumage
3. Having natural bird coverings consisting of feathers ; embellished or outfitted with feathers for decoration or clothing ; creating or growing feathers on a bird or other animal

Etymology: The adjective "feathered" is simply the past participle of the verb "feather," so its history is the history of the root it grows from. "Feather" came into Middle English as "fethere" from Old English "feþer," which traces back to a Proto-Germanic form ""feþrō." That root is shared across the Germanic languages: German has "Feder," Dutch "veer," Swedish "fjäder," and Icelandic "fjöður," all meaning the same thing. The deeper link is to flight. The Proto-Indo-European ancestor, ""péth₂r̥," is built on a root meaning "to fly," and the same root gives Ancient Greek "pétomai," meaning "to fly." Latin "penna," the source of English "pen" in its older sense of a quill, is a cousin in the same family. Feathers, in other words, were named for what they made possible.

Synonyms: plumaged, winged, furry, pennate, downy

Antonyms: bald, hairless, naked, bare, smooth