• Pileous

    Origin

    From Latin pilus + -eous, perhaps by alteration of pilous or pilose.

    Full definition of pileous

    Adjective

    pileous

    1. (uncomparable) Of, pertaining to, or consisting of hair.
      • 1861, Friedrich Wilhelm Von Scanzoni, H. Dor, A. Socin (translators), A Practical treatise on the diseases of the sexual organs of women, page 563,Another frequent affection of the labia majora, is vulvular folliculitis of Hulguier, that is to say the inflammatlon of the numerous pileous and sebaceous glands of this organ.
      • 1949, René Maurice Gattefossé, Technique of Beauty Products, page 166,A thyroid lack is usually characterised by skin infiltration, by dryness and desquamation, by depletion of the pileous system,....
      • 1995, Rupert D. V. Glasgow, Madness, Masks, and Laughter: An Essay on Comedy, page 36,The play is indeed dominated by disguise and linguistic mimicry as Titus, the "carrot-headed" comic hero, tries to overcome prejudice against redheads and climb the social ladder by donning a wig and pretending to be "normal" in matters pileous.
      • 2006, Andrew Miller, Casanova, unnumbered page,What pileous sculptures was the young man creating on that lovely head?
    2. (comparable) Covered with hair; hairy.
      • 1861, W. Newcomb, Catalogue of Helices Inhabiting the West Coast of America, North of Cape St. Lucas and West of the Rocky Mountains, American Journal of Conchology, Volume 1, page 342,This rare species might, but for the rugose and pileous epidermis and more depressed form, readily be confounded with the preceding.
      • 2008, John Tehranian, Whitewashed: America's Invisible Middle Eastern Minority, page 17,One cannot help but wonder whether the concerns ultimately had root in the presence of a diminutive, pileous, and swarthy Mediterranean atop a military vehicle, instead of our accepted Anglo-Saxon image of leadership and might.
      • 2010, Muriel Lede, The Sacrament of Conception, page 264,All of her attention is focused on surveying the rippled surface of my sturdy, pileous torso. I encourage her by stroking down her hair.
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