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definitions

prickle

[ prik-uh l ]
/ ˈprɪk əl /
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noun

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.

RELATED WORDS

point, spine, thorn, sensation, barb, bristle, spike, chill, spiculum

Nearby words

  1. prick-post,
  2. pricker,
  3. pricket,
  4. pricking,
  5. prickingly,
  6. prickle cell,
  7. prickle cell layer,
  8. prickleback,
  9. prickly,
  10. prickly ash

Origin of prickle

before 950; Middle English prykel (noun), Old English pricel. See prick, -le
Related formsun·prick·led, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for prickle

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
Word Origin and History for prickle

prickle

n.

Old English pricel "thing to prick with, goad, point," from the same source as Old English prician (see prick (v.)) with instrumental suffix -el (cf. Middle Low German prickel, Dutch prikkel).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper