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Definition of prick - 4 dictionary results

prick

  [prik]
Use prick in a Sentence
–noun
1. a puncture made by a needle, thorn, or the like.
2. a sharp point; prickle.
3. the act of pricking: the prick of a needle.
4. the state or sensation of being pricked.
5. a sharp pain caused by or as if by being pricked; twinge.
6. the pointed end of a prickspur.
7. Slang: Vulgar.
a. penis.
b. an obnoxious or contemptible person.
8. Archaic. a goad for oxen.
9. Obsolete. a small or minute mark, a dot, or a point.
10. Obsolete. any pointed instrument or weapon.
–verb (used with object)
11. to pierce with a sharp point; puncture.
12. to affect with sharp pain, as from piercing.
13. to cause sharp mental pain to; sting, as with remorse, anger, etc.: His conscience pricked him.
14. to urge on with or as if with a goad or spur: My duty pricks me on.
15. to mark (a surface) with pricks or dots in tracing something.
16. to mark or trace (something) on a surface by pricks or dots.
17. to cause to stand erect or point upward (usually fol. by up): The dog pricked his ears at the sound of the bell.
18. Farriery.
a. to lame (a horse) by driving a nail improperly into its hoof.
b. to nick: to prick a horse's tail.
19. to measure (distance, the size of an area, etc.) on a chart with dividers (usually fol. by off).
20. Horticulture. to transplant (a seedling) into a container that provides more room for growth (usually fol. by out or off).
–verb (used without object)
21. to perform the action of piercing or puncturing something.
22. to have a sensation of being pricked.
23. to spur or urge a horse on; ride rapidly.
24. to rise erect or point upward, as the ears of an animal (usually fol. by up).
—Idioms
25. kick against the pricks, to resist incontestable facts or authority; protest uselessly: In appealing the case again, you will just be kicking against the pricks.
26. prick up one's ears, to become very alert; listen attentively: The reporter pricked up his ears at the prospect of a scoop.
Origin:
bef. 1000; (n.) ME prike; OE prica, price dot, point; (v.) ME priken, OE prician; c. D, LG prik point

Related forms:
pricker, noun
prick⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To prick
prick   (prĭk)   
n.  

    1. The act of piercing or pricking.

    2. The sensation of being pierced or pricked.

    3. A persistent or sharply painful feeling of sorrow or remorse.

    4. A small, sharp, local pain, such as that made by a needle or bee sting.

    1. A persistent or sharply painful feeling of sorrow or remorse.

    2. A small, sharp, local pain, such as that made by a needle or bee sting.

  3. A small mark or puncture made by a pointed object.

  4. A pointed object, such as an ice pick, goad, or thorn.

  5. A hare's track or footprint.

  6. Vulgar Slang A penis.

  7. Vulgar Slang A person regarded as highly unpleasant, especially a male.

v.   pricked, prick·ing, pricks

v.   tr.

  1. To puncture lightly.

  2. To affect with a mental or emotional pang, as of sorrow or remorse: His conscience began to prick him.

  3. To impel as if with a spur; urge on.

  4. To mark or delineate on a surface by means of small punctures: prick a pattern on a board.

  5. To pierce the quick of (a horse's hoof) while shoeing.

  6. To transplant (seedlings, for example) before final planting.

  7. To cause to stand erect or point upward: The dogs pricked their ears.

v.   intr.

  1. To pierce or puncture something or cause a pricking feeling.

  2. To feel a pang or twinge from or as if from being pricked.

    1. To spur a horse on.

    2. To ride at a gallop.

  4. To stand erect; point upward: The dog's ears pricked at the noise.

Phrasal Verb(s):
prick off Nautical To measure with dividers on a chart.

Idiom(s):
prick up (one's) earsTo listen with attentive interest.

[Middle English, from Old English prica, puncture.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
prick

  1. n.
    the penis. (Usually objectionable.) : He held his hands over his prick and ran for the bedroom.
  2. n.
    a stupid or obnoxious male. (Usually objectionable.) : You stupid prick! Get out of here!
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

prick 
O.E. prica (n.) "point, puncture, particle;" prician (v.) "to prick," from W.Gmc. *prikojanan (cf. Low Ger. pricken, Du. prikken "to prick"); Dan. prikke "to mark with dots," Swed. pricka "to point, prick, mark with dots" are probably from Low German. Meaning "pointed weapon, dagger" is first attested 1552. Earliest recorded use for "penis" is 1592. My prick was used 16c.-17c. as a term of endearment by "immodest maids" for their boyfriends. As a term of abuse, it is attested from 1929. To prick up one's ears is 1587, originally of animals with pointed ears (prycke-eared, of foxes, is from 1523). To kick against the pricks (Acts ix.5, first in a translation of 1382) is probably from sense of "a goad for oxen" (c.1350).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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