needle

American  

[need-l] / ˈnid l /

noun

• needles
  plural

1. a small, slender, rodlike instrument, usually of polished steel, with a sharp point at one end and an eye or hole for thread at the other, for passing thread through cloth to make stitches in sewing.

2. any of various similar, usually considerably larger, implements for making stitches, as one for use in knitting or one hooked at the end for use in crocheting.

3. Medicine/Medical.

   1. a slender, pointed, steel instrument used in sewing or piercing tissues, as in suturing.

   2. hypodermic needle.

4. Informal. an injection of a drug or medicine; shot.

5. any of various objects resembling or suggesting a needle.

6. the tapered stylus at the end of a phonographic tonearm, used to transmit vibrations from a record groove to a transducer for conversion to audible signals.

7. Electricity. magnetic needle.

8. a pointed instrument, or stylus, used in engraving, etching, or the like.

9. Botany. a needle-shaped leaf, as of a conifer.

   a pine needle.

10. Zoology. a slender sharp spicule.

11. Chemistry, Mineralogy. a needlelike crystal.

12. a sharp-pointed mass or pinnacle of rock.

13. an obelisk or a tapering, four-sided shaft of stone.

    Cleopatra's Needle.

14. Also called needle beam. Building Trades. a short beam passed through a wall as a temporary support.

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verb (used with object)

• needles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• needled,
  past participle,  past
• needling
  present participle

1. to sew or pierce with or as if with a needle.

   to needle a patch on a sleeve.

2. Informal.

   1. to prod or goad (someone) to a specified action.

      We needled her into going with us.

   2. to tease.

      We needled him about his big ears.

3. Slang. to add alcohol or ether to (a beverage).

   to needle beer.

verb (used without object)

• needles,
  present (3rd person singular)
• needled,
  past participle,  past
• needling
  present participle

1. to form needles in crystallization.

2. to work with a needle.

idioms

1. the needle, irritating abuse; teasing; heckling (used especially in the phrases give someone the needle andget the needle ).

2. on the needle, taking drugs by injection, especially habitually.

needle British  

/ ˈniːdəl /

noun

1. a pointed slender piece of metal, usually steel, with a hole or eye in it through which thread is passed for sewing

2. a somewhat larger rod with a point at one or each end, used in knitting

3. a similar instrument with a hook at one end for crocheting

4. 1. another name for stylus

   2. a small thin pointed device, esp one made of stainless steel, used to transmit the vibrations from a gramophone record to the pick-up

5. med

   1. the long hollow pointed part of a hypodermic syringe, which is inserted into the body

   2. an informal name for hypodermic syringe

6. surgery a pointed steel instrument, often curved, for suturing, puncturing, or ligating

7. a long narrow stiff leaf, esp of a conifer, in which water loss is greatly reduced

   pine needles

8. any slender sharp spine, such as the spine of a sea urchin

9. any slender pointer for indicating the reading on the scale of a measuring instrument

10. short for magnetic needle

11. a crystal resembling a needle in shape

12. a sharp pointed metal instrument used in engraving and etching

13. anything long and pointed, such as an obelisk

    a needle of light

14. a short horizontal beam passed through a wall and supported on vertical posts to take the load of the upper part of the wall

15. informal

    1. anger or intense rivalry, esp in a sporting encounter

    2. ( as modifier )

       a needle match

16. informal to feel dislike, distaste, nervousness, or annoyance (for)

    she got the needle after he had refused her invitation

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verb

1. informal (tr) to goad or provoke, as by constant criticism

2. (tr) to sew, embroider, or prick (fabric) with a needle

3. (tr) to increase the alcoholic strength of (beer or other beverages)

4. (intr) (of a substance) to form needle-shaped crystals

needle Scientific  

/ nēd′l /

1. A narrow, stiff leaf, as of firs, pines, and other conifers. The reduced surface area of needles minimizes water loss and allows needle-bearing plants to live in dry climates.

2. See more at leaf

3. See hypodermic needle

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needle More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing needle

• on pins and needles

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• needlelike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• needles
  plural

Participles

• needling
  present
• needled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• needle
  simple
• needles
  simple
• have needled
  perfect
• has needled
  perfect
• am needling
  progressive
• are needling
  progressive
• is needling
  progressive
• have been needling
  perfect progressive
• has been needling
  perfect progressive

Past

• needled
  simple
• had needled
  perfect
• was needling
  progressive
• were needling
  progressive
• had been needling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will needle
  simple
• will have needled
  perfect
• will be needling
  progressive
• will have been needling
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of needle

First recorded before 900; 1880–85 needle for def. 16; Middle English nedle, Old English nǣdl, cognate with German Nadel; akin to Latin nēre to spin

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Explanation

A needle is a small, pointed piece of metal that's used in medicine or sewing. When a tailor sews a button on your shirt or even when a doctor sews your skin back together, a needle is used. Needles are sharp — when you stitch fabric with a needle, you might use a metal thimble to protect your fingertip. When a doctor or nurse uses a needle, it needs to be very sharp — it has to be able to penetrate human skin to stitch up a wound or inject a medication. When you needle someone, you don't literally poke them, but you do annoy or provoke them in some way.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

needle needles needled needling

But it’s a tricky privacy needle to thread.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

A miniature medical device small enough to be delivered through a standard needle could change how doctors treat chronic pain and movement disorders.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 11, 2026

"You've taken us for fools long enough," read a banner beneath a display depicting BFV officials using a magnet to pull a compass needle towards them.

From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2026

The French government defended on Thursday its plans to cut spending and raise taxes as it tries to thread the needle between jittery debt markets and public discontent over the rising cost of living.

From Barron's ● Oct. 1, 2026

She hated the needle they always stuck in her arm, to withdraw blood, and all the strangers in white coats moving her legs and giving her orders.

From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret

They can include muscle and joint aches, stiffness and swelling, reduced strength and pins and needles.

From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026

These particles could align with Earth's magnetic field and behave like microscopic compass needles.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 2, 2026

A Hot Wheels Porsche and other toy versions of exotic sports cars are scattered among the fallen pine needles — an apparent homage to 27-year-old James Wehr’s passion for cars.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

There was the chirping of cicadas and the crunch of desiccated pine needles underfoot, but the most remarkable thing about the place was the quiet.

From Slate ● Sep. 8, 2026

A door in the center let us into a large room where two hundred or more women bent over knitting needles.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom

Mr. Ireland indicates the uneven power dynamics involved when Leigh, though squirming at the idea, is needled into answering the same repulsive question, settling on Margaret Thatcher.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026

Women on the jury bristled when Meta attorney Andrew Stanner needled Kaley’s former therapist over her credentials during a tense cross examination on Wednesday — “You have a master’s degree, right?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026

During the session in 2017, he needled Rex Tillerson - urging him to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as a war criminal which Tillerson refused to do.

From BBC ● Jan. 13, 2025

In theaters, airplanes and performance spaces, I needled my companions by demanding specific aisle seats for legroom and faster escape.

From Salon ● Dec. 30, 2023

It didn't taste like it smells, and it needled my throat.

From "How It Went Down" by Kekla Magoon

Best known as one-half of reality TV’s most polarizing couple on “The Hills,” Pratt built a reputation as a needling instigator, often leaning into the role of villain with annoying enthusiasm.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 26, 2026

British journalist Piers Morgan, who delights in needling Australia, posted his condolences along with a prayer emoji on social media: "My thoughts with @CricketAus at this very difficult time."

From Barron's ● Feb. 17, 2026

Solomon’s response didn’t suffice for Wells Fargo’s Mike Mayo, who followed up by needling the investment bank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 13, 2026

The Steelers made no reference to dry needling in an update on Friday but that element was revealed in a post on X, external by his older brother JJ.

From BBC ● Dec. 12, 2025

She’d heard somewhere that it was possible to cook an egg on a car or cement if it was hot enough outside, and she’d been needling Kaori about it ever since.

From "Hello, Universe" by Erin Entrada Kelly

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