Brewer's: Pencil of Rays

All the rays that issue from one point, or that can be focussed at one point (Latin, penicillus, little tail, whence penicillum, a painter's brush made of the hair of a cow's tail); so called because they are like the hairs of a paint-brush, except at the point where they aggregate.

Related Content Allusions Foreign Words and Phrases Latin and Greek Word Elements Names: Their Origins and Meanings Old Testament Names Mythology Ancient Greek Literature & Mythology The Bible (King James version) The Koran (translation by J. M. Rodwell) Shakespeare's Plays Tales from Shakespeare (Charles and Mary Lamb) Frequently Misspelled Words Frequently Mispronounced Words Easily Confused Words Writing & Language