thorny
Americanadjective
-
bearing or covered with thorns
-
difficult or unpleasant
a thorny problem
-
sharp
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of thorny
before 1000; Middle English; Old English thornig. See thorn, -y 1
Explanation
Thorny things are either sharp and spiky, like a thorny briar patch, or troublesome and difficult, like a thorny problem. Either way, they can be painful! When you tackle a thorny rosebush, you'll need thick gloves and sharp pruning shears. When you tackle a thorny issue at work or at school, on the other hand, you might need tools like diplomacy and intelligence. This figurative meaning of thorny is useful for describing especially complex or distressing issues, like a thorny political problem that divides a nation.
Vocabulary lists containing thorny
All The Feels: Touching Words For Textures
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Spelling Practice 1, Unit 5
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Part 2 Vocabulary (Unit 3)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Huang did not however address the thorny issue of his months-long campaign to sell chips in China that can train and run AI systems.
From Barron's • Jun. 1, 2026
The Chinese leader hosts the U.S. president in Beijing for thorny discussions and a show of stable relations.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026
Chinese leader Xi Jinping welcomed US President Donald Trump with a handshake on Thursday in Beijing for a superpower summit on thorny issues including Iran, trade and Taiwan.
From Barron's • May 13, 2026
The winner will confront a number of thorny issues, including high rents, a stubborn homelessness crisis and street lights stripped of copper wire.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
The sentences build a fence around her, a Times Roman 10-point barricade, to keep the thorny voices in her head from getting too close.
From "Wintergirls" by Laurie Halse Anderson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
