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.
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 followed 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 followed by off ).
20.
Horticulture. to transplant (a seedling) into a container that provides more room for growth (usually followed by out or off ).
00:10
Prick
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is yaff. Does it mean:
| to bark; yelp. |
| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
verb (used without object)
Idioms 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 followed by up ).
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:
before 1000; (noun) Middle English prike; Old English prica, price dot, point; (v.) Middle English priken, Old English prician; cognate with Dutch, Low German prik point
before 1000; (noun) Middle English prike; Old English prica, price dot, point; (v.) Middle English priken, Old English prician; cognate with Dutch, Low German prik point
Related forms
prick·er, noun
prick·ing·ly, adverb
un·pricked, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To prick
Collins
World English Dictionary
prick (prɪk) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb (usually foll by up) (usually foll by out | |
| 1. | a. to make (a small hole) in (something) by piercing lightly with a sharp point |
| b. to wound in this manner | |
| 2. | (intr) to cause or have a piercing or stinging sensation |
| 3. | to cause to feel a sharp emotional pain: knowledge of such poverty pricked his conscience |
| 4. | to puncture or pierce |
| 5. | to mark, delineate, or outline by dots or punctures |
| 6. | to rise or raise erect; point: the dog pricked his ears up at his master's call |
| 7. | to transplant (seedlings) into a larger container |
| 8. | ( |
| 9. | archaic to rouse or impel; urge on |
| 10. | archaic (intr) to ride fast on horseback; spur a horse on |
| 11. | prick up one's ears to start to listen attentively; become interested |
| —n | |
| 12. | the act of pricking or the condition or sensation of being pricked |
| 13. | a mark made by a sharp point; puncture |
| 14. | a sharp emotional pain resembling the physical pain caused by being pricked: a prick of conscience |
| 15. | a taboo slang word for penis |
| 16. | slang, derogatory an obnoxious or despicable man |
| 17. | an instrument or weapon with a sharp point, such as a thorn, goad, bee sting, etc |
| 18. | the footprint or track of an animal, esp a hare |
| 19. | obsolete a small mark caused by pricking a surface; dot; point |
| 20. | kick against the pricks to hurt oneself by struggling against something in vain |
| [Old English prica point, puncture; related to Dutch prik, Icelandic prik short stick, Swedish prick point, stick] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
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, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
prick definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Nearby Words
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