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hackle

/ˈhækəl/
noun
  1. An instrument with steel pins used to comb out flax or hemp.

    Similar: hatchel, heckle

  2. (usually now in the plural) One of the long, narrow feathers on the neck of birds, most noticeable on the rooster.

  3. A feather used to make a fishing lure or a fishing lure incorporating a feather.

Synonymshatchel, heckle, panache, plume
verb
  1. To dress (flax or hemp) with a hackle; to prepare fibres of flax or hemp for spinning.

  2. To separate, as the coarse part of flax or hemp from the fine, by drawing it through the teeth of a hackle or hatchel.

  3. To tear asunder; to break into pieces.

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