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

LIV tried to thread a vibe needle between a nouveau country club and the tailgate at a Limp Bizkit show, and it never clicked.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

Reports that the Walt Disney Company is poised to lay off thousands of workers didn’t seem to move the needle for its languishing stock on Tuesday.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 3, 2026

The PHA said needle exchange sites "are located in areas where there is an existing pattern of injecting behaviour"

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

“Our mission the whole time has been: How do we thread the needle of doing something that’s a little left of center while making it commercial enough that people can hear it?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026

She held it, as carefully as if it were alive, and watched the needle spin a full circle, until it pointed back up the cliff, back exactly the way she had come.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

About 721,000 needles and syringes were given out, which is a 7.5% increase compared with the previous year.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

Whatever you do, never put a sharps container or loose needles in your recycling bin.

From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026

Thick, tough evergreen needles are specially adapted to withstand drought and cold, but the thinner, broader leaves of deciduous trees cannot survive such harsh conditions and so go out in a blaze of autumnal glory.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

For most, he said, the standard flu shot suffices, though he noted there are other options, including a nasal spray version — great for almost anyone with a fear of needles — and higher-dosage shots.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026

I stopped cold in the middle of the hall as goose bumps ran up my arms, prickling like needles along my neck, because it hadn’t been dumb luck.

From "Glitch" by Laura Martin

For nearly two decades, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has needled and probed Wall Street at every turn.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 6, 2026

During the July 2025 interview, there were some tense moments: Owens needled Fuentes over why he hadn’t married and started a family.

From Salon ● Jan. 2, 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

Washington artists used mind-bending jazz experimentations to question deep-seated social and economic systems, and needled billionaire tech villains through hummable punk bops.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 23, 2023

The spruce tree is densely limbed and needled, but what Alice doesn’t know is that a goshawk can maneuver a maze.

From "On the Far Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George

Of course, Na is toying with his audience’s show me anticipation, while plying his trademark humor about rural sensibilities and desperate needling behavior.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026

The Welsh Government says it is monitoring the implementation of mandatory licencing schemes for acupuncture, dry needling, body piercing, electrolysis, tattooing and semi-permanent makeup and this "will inform any potential future extension to other procedures".

From BBC ● Jul. 5, 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 young chemist sprinted up three flights to Lawrence’s office in LeConte Hall to find him in a state of agitation over Urey’s needling.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

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