Adjacent Words

Preen definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PREEN, n. A forked instrument used by clothiers in dressing cloth.
PREEN, v.t. To clean, compose and dress the feathers, as fowls, to enable them to glide more easily through the air or water. For this purpose they are furnished with two glands on their rump, which secrete an oily substance into a bag, from which they draw it with the bill and spread it over their feathers.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: clean with one's bill; "The birds preened" [syn: preen, plume]
2: pride or congratulate (oneself) for an achievement [syn: preen, congratulate]
3: dress or groom with elaborate care; "She likes to dress when going to the opera" [syn: preen, primp, plume, dress]

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English prene, from Old English pr?on; akin to Middle High German pfrieme awl Date: before 12th century 1. dialect chiefly British pin 2. dialect chiefly British brooch II. transitive verb Date: 1572 chiefly Scottish pin III. verb Etymology: Middle English prenen, alteration of proynen, prunen, from Anglo-French puroindre, proindre, from pur- thoroughly + uindre, oindre to anoint, rub, from Latin unguere — more at purchase, ointment Date: 14th century transitive verb 1. of a bird to groom with the bill especially by rearranging the barbs and barbules of the feathers and by distributing oil from the uropygial gland 2. to dress or smooth (oneself) up ; primp 3. to pride or congratulate (oneself) for achievement intransitive verb 1. to make oneself sleek 2. gloat, swell • preener noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v.tr. & refl. 1 (of a bird) tidy (the feathers or itself) with its beak. 2 (of a person) smarten or admire (oneself, one's hair, clothes, etc.). 3 (often foll. by on) congratulate or pride (oneself). Phrases and idioms: preen gland a gland situated at the base of a bird's tail and producing oil used in preening. Derivatives: preener n. Etymology: ME, app. var. of earlier prune (perh. rel. to PRUNE(2)): assoc. with Sc. & dial. preen pierce, pin

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Preen Preen, n. [AS. pre['o]n a clasp, bodkin; akin to D. priem punch, bodkin, awl, G. pfriem, Icel. prj[=o]nn a knitting needle, pin, Dan. preen a bodkin, punch.] A forked tool used by clothiers in dressing cloth.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Preen Preen, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Preened; p. pr. & vb. n. Preening.] [See Preen, n.; or cf. Prune.] 1. To dress with, or as with, a preen; to trim or dress with the beak, as the feathers; -- said of birds. --Derham. 2. To trim up, as trees. [Prov. Eng.] --Halliwell.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(preens, preening, preened) 1. If someone preens themselves, they spend a lot of time making themselves look neat and attractive; used especially if you want to show that you disapprove of this behaviour or that you find it ridiculous and amusing. 50% of men under 35 spend at least 20 minutes preening themselves every morning in the bathroom... Bill preened his beard. VERB: V pron-refl, V n [disapproval] 2. If someone preens, they think in a pleased way about how attractive, clever, or good at something they are. She stood preening in their midst, delighted with the attention... He preened himself on the praise he had received. ...a preening prize fighter about to enter a ring. VERB: V, V pron-refl on n, V-ing [disapproval] 3. When birds preen their feathers, they clean them and arrange them neatly using their beaks. Rare birds preen themselves right in front of your camera. VERB: V pron-refl, also V, V n

Moby Thesaurus

adorn, array, beautify, bedeck, bedizen, blazon, brush up, clean, color, dandify, deck, deck out, decorate, dizen, doll up, dress, dress up, embellish, emblazon, embroider, enrich, fettle, fig out, fix up, furbish, garnish, grace, groom, gussy up, manicure, ornament, paint, pique, plume, prank, prank up, prettify, primp, primp up, prink, prink up, redecorate, redo, refurbish, set off, set out, smarten, smarten up, spruce up, titivate, trick out, trick up, trim