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Thorn vs Prickly - What's the difference?

thorn | prickly |

As a proper noun thorn

is for someone living near a thorn bush.

As an adjective prickly is

covered with sharp points.

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

    * * ----

    prickly

    English

    Adjective

    (er)
  • Covered with sharp points.
    • Prickly pear is a cactus, you have to peel it before eating it to remove the spines and the tough skin.
  • Easily irritated.
    • He has a prickly personality. He doesn't get along with people because he is easily set off.
  • difficult, hairy, complicated

    • Synonyms

    * (covered with sharp points) thorny, spiny

    Derived terms

    * prickly comfrey * prickly glasswort * prickly heat * prickly saltwort * prickly sculpin * prickly shield fern * prickly tang