Having a brownish or tawny color with streaks of other color; marked with dark streaks or spots on a grey or tawny ground.
Alteration of 'brinded,' from Middle English 'brend' (burned). The pattern looks like flame-marks on fur — as if the animal walked through fire and kept the scorch marks as decoration.
That beautiful tiger-striped pattern on dogs and cats — like they walked through a campfire and kept the flame marks as fashion! The word comes from 'burned' because it looks like FIRE painted their fur! ðŸ•ðŸ”¥
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