prickle

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prick·le

(prĭk′əl)

a. A small hard pointed outgrowth of the epidermis of a plant, in contrast to a modified plant organ such as a spine or thorn.

b. A spine, thorn, or other small sharp structure.

2. A tingling or pricking sensation: felt prickles in my leg after sitting for so long.

v. prick·led, prick·ling, prick·les

v.intr.

1. To feel a tingling or pricking sensation: His skin prickled with fear.

2. To rise or stand up like prickles: The hair on my neck prickled.

v.tr.

To cause a tingling or pricking sensation in: Tears prickled my eyes.

[Middle English prikel, from Old English pricel.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

prickle

(ˈprɪkəl)

1. (Botany) botany a pointed process arising from the outer layer of a stem, leaf, etc, and containing no woody or conducting tissue. Compare thorn¹

2. a pricking or stinging sensation

3. to feel or cause to feel a stinging sensation

4. (tr) to prick, as with a thorn

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

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

prick•le

(ˈprɪk əl)

n., v. -led, -ling. n.

1. a sharp point.

2. a small, sharp thorn or projection, as on a plant.

3. a pricking sensation.

v.t.

4. to prick lightly.

5. to cause a pricking or tingling sensation in.

v.i.

6. to tingle as if pricked.

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

prickle

Past participle: prickled
Gerund: prickling

Imperative
prickle
prickle

Present
I prickle
you prickle
he/she/it prickles
we prickle
you prickle
they prickle

Preterite
I prickled
you prickled
he/she/it prickled
we prickled
you prickled
they prickled

Present Continuous
I am prickling
you are prickling
he/she/it is prickling
we are prickling
you are prickling
they are prickling

Present Perfect
I have prickled
you have prickled
he/she/it has prickled
we have prickled
you have prickled
they have prickled

Past Continuous
I was prickling
you were prickling
he/she/it was prickling
we were prickling
you were prickling
they were prickling

Past Perfect
I had prickled
you had prickled
he/she/it had prickled
we had prickled
you had prickled
they had prickled

Future
I will prickle
you will prickle
he/she/it will prickle
we will prickle
you will prickle
they will prickle

Future Perfect
I will have prickled
you will have prickled
he/she/it will have prickled
we will have prickled
you will have prickled
they will have prickled

Future Continuous
I will be prickling
you will be prickling
he/she/it will be prickling
we will be prickling
you will be prickling
they will be prickling

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been prickling
you have been prickling
he/she/it has been prickling
we have been prickling
you have been prickling
they have been prickling

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been prickling
you will have been prickling
he/she/it will have been prickling
we will have been prickling
you will have been prickling
they will have been prickling

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been prickling
you had been prickling
he/she/it had been prickling
we had been prickling
you had been prickling
they had been prickling

Conditional
I would prickle
you would prickle
he/she/it would prickle
we would prickle
you would prickle
they would prickle

Past Conditional
I would have prickled
you would have prickled
he/she/it would have prickled
we would have prickled
you would have prickled
they would have prickled

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Switch to new thesaurus

Noun	1.	prickle - a small sharp-pointed tip resembling a spike on a stem or leaf pricker, spikelet, sticker, thorn, spine aculeus - a stiff sharp-pointed plant process glochid, glochidium - a barbed spine or bristle (often tufted on cacti)
Verb	1.	prickle - cause a prickling sensation prick twinge, prick, sting - cause a stinging pain; "The needle pricked his skin"
	2.	prickle - cause a stinging or tingling sensation tingle itch - have or perceive an itch; "I'm itching--the air is so dry!"
	3.	prickle - make a small hole into, as with a needle or a thorn; "The nurse pricked my finger to get a small blood sample" prick needle - prick with a needle pierce - make a hole into; "The needle pierced her flesh"

prickle

verb

1. tingle, smart, sting, twitch, itch His scalp prickled under his wig.

2. prick, stick into, nick, jab The pine needles prickled her skin.

noun

1. tingling, smart, chill, tickle, tingle, pins and needles (informal), goose bumps, goose flesh, paraesthesia (Medical) a prickle at the nape of my neck reminds me of my fears

2. spike, point, spur, needle, spine, thorn, barb an erect stem covered at the base with prickles

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

prickle

noun

1. A sharp, pointed object:

needle, prick, spine, thorn.

2. A sensation of physical discomfort occurring as the result of disease or injury:

ache, pain, pang, prick, smart, soreness, stab, sting, stitch, throe, twinge.

Informal: misery.

Translations

شَوْكَهنَخْزَه، تَنْميل في الجِلْد

bodáníostentrn

pigstiktorn

Stachel Prickeln

espina

épine piquant

bizsergés

broddur; òyrnirstingur

spina aculeo pungiglione

dilgusdirginantisdygliuotasdyglysdygumas

adatadūriens, dzēliensdzelonisērkšķis

liten torn pigg prikking stikking

колотьё колючка

bodica

diken iğneiğnelenmekarıncalanma

动植物的皮刺针刺般的感觉

prickle

[ˈprɪkl]

A. N

1. (on plant, animal) → espina f

2. (= sensation) → picor m, comezón f

B. VT → picar

C. VI → picar, hormiguear
my eyes are prickling → me pican los ojos
I could feel my skin prickling → me escocía la piel

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

prickle

[ˈprɪk^əl] n

[plant] → épine f

(= sensation) → picotement m

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

prickle

(= sharp point) → Stachel m; (on plants) → Dorn m, → Stachel m

(= sensation) → Stechen nt; (caused by wool, beard etc) → Kratzen nt; (= tingle, also fig) → Prickeln nt

vi → stechen; (wool, beard) → kratzen; (= tingle, also fig) → prickeln

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

prickle

[ˈprɪkl] n

a. (on plant, animal) → spina

b. (sensation) → sensazione f di prurito, pizzicore m; (of fear) → brivido

prickle

(ˈprikl) noun

1. a sharp point growing on a plant or animal. A hedgehog is covered with prickles.

2. a feeling of being pricked. a prickle of fear.

ˈprickly adjective

1. covered with prickles. Holly is a prickly plant.

2. pricking; stinging. a prickly rash.

ˈprickliness noun

prickle

vi hormiguear, picar

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

But one of the tree's prickles pierced his finger and caused great pain and inflammation, so that the young Prince fell down in a fainting fit.

View in context

Her little black nose went sniffle, sniffle, snuffle, and her eyes went twinkle, twinkle; and underneath her cap--where Lucie had yellow curls--that little person had PRICKLES!

AND how small she had grown--and how brown --and covered with PRICKLES!

View in context

‡ There is cultivated in the king's garden at Paris, a species of serpentine aloes without prickles, whose large and beautiful flower exhales a strong odour of the vanilla, during the time of its expansion, which is very short.

View in context

He was not more than three feet high, his legs were quite crooked, and all his body was covered with prickles like a hedgehog.

View in context

"Do you remember--the piano, the room in the attic, and the great plants with the prickles?"

View in context

Among them have been found the Kimiri, native of Sumatra and the peninsula of Malacca; the cocoa-nut of Balci, known by its shape and size; the Dadass, which is planted by the Malays with the pepper-vine, the latter intwining round its trunk, and supporting itself by the prickles on its stem; the soap-tree; the castor-oil plant; trunks of the sago palm; and various kinds of seeds unknown to the Malays settled on the islands.

View in context

The tone is uneven - a tug-of-war between parody and slasher pulls hardest in favour of the latter - and characterisation is painfully thin, leaving Dunn to stare eerily into the camera to prickle our fear.

Brightburn

Councillor Gill has chosen to support Ludlow Food Bank and Prickle Bums Hedgehog Rescue for his third term.

Mayor 'honoured' to be chosen for office third year in a row

Qiyas Khan, a resident of Khar town, said he was unable to get even a single bottle of prickle in the utility store in Khar.

USC outlets in Bajaur short of essential items

The only pain I've noticed has been a light prickle the next day, but it hardly compares with the side effects of an untreated burn, especially from hot oil.

Cool That Burn

It preserves Vinho Verde's classic lightness, freshness and effervescent prickle but surrounds it with red apple and tropical fruit components - enlivened by gentle lime acidity.