prickle
Americannoun
-
a sharp point.
-
a small, pointed process growing from the bark of a plant.
-
a sharp process or projection, as from the skin of an animal; a spine.
-
a pricking sensation.
verb (used with object)
-
to prick lightly.
-
to cause a pricking or tingling sensation in.
verb (used without object)
noun
-
botany a pointed process arising from the outer layer of a stem, leaf, etc, and containing no woody or conducting tissue Compare thorn
-
a pricking or stinging sensation
verb
-
to feel or cause to feel a stinging sensation
-
(tr) to prick, as with a thorn
Other Word Forms
- unprickled adjective
Etymology
Origin of prickle
before 950; Middle English prykel (noun), Old English pricel. See prick, -le
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some hedgehogs arriving at the rescue centre felt like "little empty bags of prickles and very, very slim" due to dehydration, Thompson said.
From BBC
When we passed the mill, I got a cold prickle on my neck, like someone was watching me.
From Literature
In return he tried to make their lives comfortable, learning to cure their ills, treating their cuts and bruises as his mother treated his, combing burrs and prickles from their woolly coats.
From Literature
A prickle of horror ran down the back of his neck and into his arms and legs.
From Literature
“There was the flash of a million suns. Then the heat prickled my eyes like needles.”
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
