prickle — English Dictionary

Noun

1. A sharp and often small point, especially that of a plant; a thorn.

   Examples

   The plants that have prickles are, thorns, black and white, briar, rose, lemon-trees,[…]

2. A sharp and often small point, especially that of a plant; a thorn. A sharp, hard extension of the cortex and epidermis of some plants (such as roses), as distinguished from a thorn.

3. A tingling sensation of mild discomfort.

   Usage

   • Figurative

4. Gooseflesh.

   Usage

   • Ulster
   • in-plural

5. A kind of willow basket.

   Examples

   If I had but a pottle of Sacke, like a sharp prickle, / To knock my nose against when I am nodding

   More examples (1)

   The prickle is a brown willow basket, in which walnuts are imported into this country from the Continent; they are about thirty inches deep, and in bulk rather larger than a gallon measure; they are used only by the vendors of walnuts.

6. A sieve of hazelnuts, weighing about fifty pounds.

   Usage

   • UK usage
   • Obsolete

7. A group of hedgehogs or porcupines.

   Usage

   • collective

   Examples

   More examples (2)

   That honour belongs to a hairy-footed flower bee, a breeding pair of geese, some dragonfly nymphs, a flock of grey wagtails, a prickle of hedgehogs, an armada of newts, a flutter of spring butterflies and a “very cheeky” fox.

   It may strike some people as odd, a father-daughter gift of a porcupine (and a dead one, at that), but a prickle of porcupines had become quite the pests around his farm, damaging things and gnawing the bark off of many of the trees.

   Our prickle of porcupines has grown

Verb

1. To feel a prickle.

   Usage

   • Intransitive

2. To cause (someone) to feel a prickle; to prick.

   Usage

   • Transitive

   Examples

   Guilt prickled me. It was about to get much worse.

Noun

1. a small sharp-pointed tip resembling a spike on a stem or leaf

   Synonyms

   spinethornprickersticker

   Broader terms

   aculeus

Verb

1. cause a prickling sensation

   Synonyms

   prick

   Broader terms

   prickstingtwinge

2. cause a stinging or tingling sensation

   Synonyms

   tingle

   Broader terms

   itch

3. make a small hole into, as with a needle or a thorn

   Synonyms

   prick

   Broader terms

   pierce

   Examples

   The nurse pricked my finger to get a small blood sample