thorny

[thawr-nee]

adjective

thornier, thorniest 

1. abounding in or characterized by thorns; spiny; prickly.

2. thornlike.

3. overgrown with thorns or brambles.

4. painful; vexatious.

   a thorny predicament.

5. full of difficulties, complexities, or controversial points.

   a thorny question.

   Synonyms: ticklish, sticky, tough

thorny

/ ˈθɔːnɪ /

adjective

1. bearing or covered with thorns

2. difficult or unpleasant

   a thorny problem

3. sharp

Other Word Forms

• thornily adverb
• thorniness noun
• unthorny adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of thorny¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English thornig. See thorn, -y ¹

Example Sentences

However the announcements did not cover some thorny issues both sides have not reached a resolution on.

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She knows it’s hard to get people out to movie theaters, especially for a film that asks these kinds of thorny questions.

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It could be a radical breakthrough in one of the thorniest questions in the UK - how to protect farming and food supplies, while also addressing the huge impacts they have on the environment and climate.

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Her exile in Cuba was among the many thorny issues between the communist-run island and the US.

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Other thorny issues - including tech export restrictions and Chinese purchases of US agricultural products - so far remain unresolved.

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Related Words

• awkward 
• bothersome 
• irksome 
• nettlesome 
• perplexing 
• prickly 
• sticky 
• ticklish 
• tricky 
• troublesome 
• unpleasant