nettle
any plant of the genus Urtica, covered with stinging hairs.: Compare nettle family.
any of various allied or similar plants.
to irritate, annoy, or provoke.
to sting as a nettle does.
Idioms about nettle
grasp the nettle, Australian. to undertake or tackle an unpleasant task.
Origin of nettle
1Other words from nettle
- net·tle·like, adjective
- nettler, noun
- nettly, adjective
- un·net·tled, adjective
Words Nearby nettle
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use nettle in a sentence
General exclamations of surprise and doubt greeted him from our little circle, and this seemed to nettle him somewhat.
The Way of a Man | Emerson HoughA curious dark blue dead-nettle (Dracocephalum speciosum) was found on dry ground at the same altitude.
Mount Everest the Reconnaissance, 1921 | Charles Kenneth Howard-Bury"Not a word," said Neeld, grasping the nettle firmly this time.
Tristram of Blent | Anthony HopeThe nettle needs no introduction; we are all too well acquainted with it, yet it is not altogether a weed to be despised.
The plant-lore and garden-craft of Shakespeare | Henry Nicholson EllacombeIndeed, the temper of our eminently serene will feel the strain of a doldrum-dulness that is goaded to activity by a nettle.
Lord Ormont and his Aminta, Complete | George Meredith
British Dictionary definitions for nettle
/ (ˈnɛtəl) /
any weedy plant of the temperate urticaceous genus Urtica, such as U. dioica (stinging nettle), having serrated leaves with stinging hairs and greenish flowers
any of various other urticaceous plants with stinging hairs or spines
any of various plants that resemble urticaceous nettles, such as the dead-nettle, hemp nettle, and horse nettle
grasp the nettle to attempt or approach something with boldness and courage
to bother; irritate
to sting as a nettle does
Origin of nettle
1Derived forms of nettle
- nettle-like, adjective
- nettly, adjective
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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