prickle

[ prik-uhl ]

/ ˈprɪk əl /

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See synonyms for: prickle / prickled / prickling on Thesaurus.com

noun

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), prick·led, prick·ling.

to prick lightly.

to cause a pricking or tingling sensation in.

verb (used without object), prick·led, prick·ling.

to tingle as if pricked.

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Origin of prickle

before 950; Middle English prykel (noun), Old English pricel.See prick, -le

OTHER WORDS FROM prickle

un·prick·led, adjective

Words nearby prickle

prick, prick-eared, pricker, pricket, pricking, prickle, prickleback, prickly, prickly ash, prickly heat, prickly pear

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use prickle in a sentence

For an hour or two, exile became a notion rather than a perpetual prickle in the stomach.
Reading Nabokov to Nabokov|Lila Azam Zanganeh|February 29, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Variable œdema of the prickle layer and of the cutis is found.
Essentials of Diseases of the Skin|Henry Weightman Stelwagon
I felt the prickle of my skin, the stiffening of my hair, as well as the cold tingling thrills along my veins.
Tales of lonely trails|Zane Grey
The wild Dog-rose is still the "canker" in the speech of the old people, and a thorn or prickle is still a "bush."
Wood and Garden|Gertrude Jekyll

Sane as Kenset was, as cool and self-contained, he could not repress a cold prickle of resentment at that memory.
Tharon of Lost Valley|Vingie E. Roe
Fake though he knew it to be, Cleek could not repress a swift rush and prickle of "goose-flesh" at sight of it.
Cleek, the Master Detective|Thomas W. Hanshew

British Dictionary definitions for prickle

prickle

/ (ˈprɪkəl) /

noun

botany a pointed process arising from the outer layer of a stem, leaf, etc, and containing no woody or conducting tissueCompare thorn (def. 1)

a pricking or stinging sensation

verb

to feel or cause to feel a stinging sensation

(tr) to prick, as with a thorn

Word Origin for prickle

Old English pricel; related to Middle Low German prekel, German Prickel

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

prickle

Origin of prickle

OTHER WORDS FROM prickle

Words nearby prickle

Words related to prickle

How to use prickle in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for prickle

Word Origin for prickle