bushy-tailed
UK[ˈbʊʃi teɪld]US[ˈbʊʃi teɪld]
adj
Having a tail that is thick, full, and spreading like a bush
adj
(especially in combination 'bright-eyed and bushy-tailed') Alert, lively, and eager
Morpheme Breakdown
bushy
tail
ed
bushy
bush-like
tail
rear appendage
ed
having the quality of
Etymology
The compound adjective 'bushy-tailed' is a transparent descriptive formation from native English elements. Its first element, 'bushy', derives from 'bush', a word for a shrub with many small branches, which creates an immediate visual metaphor for thickness and fullness. The second element, 'tail', is the common term for the rear appendage of an animal. The suffix '-ed' is added to the noun compound to create a participial adjective meaning 'possessing a tail of that nature'. The vivid imagery of a thick, flourishing tail, most famously associated with alert squirrels or foxes, led to the figurative idiom 'bright-eyed and bushy-tailed', which projects the animal's appearance of keen alertness onto an enthusiastic and lively human state.
Analysis
Structure: bushy (bush-like) + tail (rear appendage) + ed (having the quality of)
- bushy: From Middle English 'busshi', from 'bush' (shrub) + '-y' (adjective-forming suffix). Origin: Old English 'busc', of Germanic origin.
- tail: From Middle English 'tail', from Old English 'tægl'. Origin: Proto-Germanic 'taglaz'.
- ed: A suffix forming adjectives from nouns, meaning 'having' or 'characterized by'. Origin: Old English '-ede'.
Examples
The bushy-tailed squirrel darted up the oak tree.
After a good night's sleep, she arrived at the meeting bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
The fox, with its distinctive bushy-tailed silhouette, disappeared into the woods.