thorny

[thawr-nee]

adjective

thornier, thorniest 

1. abounding in or characterized by thorns; spiny; prickly.

2. thornlike.

3. overgrown with thorns or brambles.

4. painful; vexatious.

   a thorny predicament.

5. full of difficulties, complexities, or controversial points.

   a thorny question.

   Synonyms: ticklish, sticky, tough

thorny

/ ˈθɔːnɪ /

adjective

1. bearing or covered with thorns

2. difficult or unpleasant

   a thorny problem

3. sharp

Other Word Forms

• thornily adverb
• thorniness noun
• unthorny adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of thorny¹

before 1000; Middle English; Old English thornig. See thorn, -y ¹

Example Sentences

Trier trusts his audience to understand that something deeper and more thorny is afoot here, without laying out information plainly.

Read more on Salon

The thorniest issues were bundled into a "mutirao" pact -- the summit's slogan, drawn from the Tupi-Guarani word for "collective effort."

Read more on Barron's

Check out the Moneyist private Facebook Group, where we look for answers to life’s thorniest money issues.

Read more on MarketWatch

As the EU's digital rules are the subject of thorny relations with Washington, the bloc's tech chief Henna Virkkunen is also expected to meet the Americans.

Read more on Barron's

One particularly thorny issue has been China's moves to restrict exports of rare earths, crucial to many sectors worldwide from automotive to electronics.

Read more on Barron's

Related Words

• awkward 
• bothersome 
• irksome 
• nettlesome 
• perplexing 
• prickly 
• sticky 
• ticklish 
• tricky 
• troublesome 
• unpleasant