prickle

[prik-uh l]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR prickle 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.

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

Related Words for prickling

tingling, throb, ache, bite, inspire, hurt, caustic, piercing, irritating, sharp, biting, smarting, reeking, crawling, tickle, rawness, irritation, creeping, psoriasis, itchiness

Examples from the Web for prickling

Historical Examples of prickling

There was a prickling at the base of my scalp and I was drenched with cold sweat.
The Man the Martians Made
Frank Belknap Long
During the night, the fullness, numbness, and prickling were much increased.
An Essay on the Shaking Palsy
James Parkinson
For a strange nothing had started my neck-hairs to prickling.
Futuria Fantasia, Winter 1940
Ray Bradbury
That instant, wherever the weight of his hand had been, the prickling began.
The Wonder of War on Land
Francis Rolt-Wheeler
He felt a prickling on the nape of his neck, as the hair stirred there.
Darkness and Dawn
George Allan England

British Dictionary definitions for prickling

prickle

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 prickling

prickle

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).