Plumate

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Characterized by a feather-like appearance, often relating to structures resembling feathers
2. Describing an aspect of animals or items that have features similar to plumage or down
3. Having qualities or parts that resemble feathers in form or texture

Etymology: Plumate comes from Latin "plumatus," a past participle built on "pluma," meaning "feather." The "-atus" ending gives the sense "furnished with" or "having," so the literal meaning is "feathered." English took the word for technical description, and it is used mainly in zoology and botany, where it describes hairs, bristles, or other structures that look like feathers. Its near relative "plumose," from Latin "plumosus" ("full of feathers"), is the more common of the two in specialist writing. Both words trace back to "pluma," which also gave English "plume" and, through French, "plumage." Plumate therefore sits in the same family as the everyday words for a bird's covering, though it stays in the vocabulary of scientific description.

Synonyms: feathered, plumaged