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Needle vs Thorn - What's the difference?

needle | thorn |

As a noun needle

is a long, thin, sharp implement usually for piercing such as sewing, or knitting, acupuncture, tattooing, body piercing, medical injections etc.

As a verb needle

is to pierce with a needle, especially for sewing or acupuncture.

As a proper noun thorn is

for someone living near a thorn bush.

needle

English

(wikipedia needle)

Noun

(en noun)
  • A long, thin, sharp implement usually for piercing such as sewing, or knitting, acupuncture, tattooing, body piercing, medical injections etc.
  • The seamstress threaded the needle to sew on a button.
  • Any slender, pointed object resembling a needle, such as a pointed crystal, a sharp pinnacle of rock, an obelisk, etc.
  • A long, thin device for indicating measurements on a dial or graph, e.g. a compass needle .
  • The needle on the fuel gauge pointed to empty.
  • A sensor for playing phonograph records, a phonograph stylus.
  • Ziggy bought some diamond needles for his hi-fi phonograph.
  • A long, pointed leaf found on some conifers.
  • * 1994 , , ch. 2:
  • At the very moment he cried out, David realised that what he had run into was only the Christmas tree. Disgusted with himself at such cowardice, he spat a needle from his mouth.
  • (informal, usually preceded by the) The death penalty carried out by lethal injection.
  • Derived terms

    * compass needle * knitting needle * needlenose * needlenose pliers * on pins and needles * move the needle * packing needle * pine needle * pins and needles * needle in a haystack * needlepunch * needle-sharp * needlewise

    See also

    * acerate * eye * pin

    Verb

    (needl)
  • To pierce with a needle, especially for sewing or acupuncture.
  • * 1892 , H. Lindo Ferguson, "Operation on Microphthamlmic Eyes", Ophthalmic Review? , volume 11, page 48
  • the eyes were once more beginning to show the old nystagmus; so I decided to needle' the cataracts, and on Jan. 31 I ' needled the right eye.
  • * 2000 , Felix Mann, Reinventing Acupuncture , page 109
  • Possibly the greatest effect is achieved in the hand by needling the thumb, the index finger and the region of the 1st and 2nd metacarpal.
  • To tease in order to provoke; to poke fun at.
  • Billy needled his sister incessantly about her pimples.
  • * 1984 , Leopold Caligor, Philip M. Bromberg, & James D. Meltzer, Clinical Perspectives on the Supervision of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy? , page 14
  • FRED: Well, I teased her to some extent, or I needled' her, not teased her. I ' needled her about—first I said that she didn't want to work, and then I think that there were a couple of comments.
  • To form in the shape of a needle.
  • to needle crystals

    Synonyms

    * (to tease) goad, tease

    thorn

    English

    (wikipedia thorn)

    Noun

    (en noun)
  • A sharp protective spine of a plant.
  • Any shrub or small tree that bears thorns.
  • the white thorn'''; the cockspur '''thorn
  • (figurative) That which pricks or annoys; anything troublesome.
  • * Bible, 2 Corinthians xii. 7
  • There was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me.
  • * South
  • The guilt of empire, all its thorns and cares, / Be only mine.
  • A letter of the Latin alphabet (capital:'' Þ''', ''small:'' '''þ'''), borrowed by Old English from the futhark to represent a dental fricative, then not distinguished from eth, but in modern use (in Icelandic and other languages, but no longer in English) used only for the voiceless dental fricative found in English '' '''th igh
  • * See also Etymology of ye (definite article).
  • Derived terms

    * thorn apple * thorn broom * thornbush * thorn devil * thorn hopper * thorn in one's side * Thornton * thorny

    Verb

    (en verb)
  • To pierce with, or as if with, a
  • * {{quote-book, year=1869, author=, title=Old Town Folks citation
  • , passage=
  • * {{quote-book, year=2003, author=Scott D. Zachary, title=Scorn This, pageurl=http://books.google.com/books?id=HELSK5JtSbMC&pg=PA175, page=175
  • , passage=Even Judge Bradley's callused sentiments were thorned by the narration of Jaclyn's journals.}}

    See also

    * eth, edh, * wynn, wen, *

    Anagrams

    * * ----