horripilation

[ haw-rip-uh-ley-shuhn, ho- ]
See synonyms for horripilation on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a bristling of the hair on the skin from cold, fear, etc.; goose bumps.

Origin of horripilation

1
First recorded in 1650–60; from Late Latin horripilātiōn- (stem of horripilātiō ); see horripilate, -ion

Words Nearby horripilation

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use horripilation in a sentence

  • The boy who saved her, the boy with the jolly tongue in his head, humorous amid the “horripilation,” had addressed it as Dad.

    Pemrose Lorry, Camp Fire Girl | Isabel Katherine Hornibrook
  • It seemed by its thorns to be in a state of perpetual horripilation, and by its roaming black antelopes to be rolling its eyes.

    The Kath Sarit Sgara | Somadeva Bhatta
  • But, suddenly, through all the horripilation there seemed to shine a light.

    Pemrose Lorry, Camp Fire Girl | Isabel Katherine Hornibrook

British Dictionary definitions for horripilation

horripilation

/ (hɒˌrɪpɪˈleɪʃən) /


nounphysiol
  1. a technical name for goose flesh

  2. the erection of any short bodily hairs

Origin of horripilation

1
C17: from Late Latin horripilātiō a bristling, from Latin horrēre to stand on end + pilus hair

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012