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Definition of prickle - 3 dictionary results

prick⋅le

  [prik-uhl] noun, verb, -led, -ling.
Use prickle in a Sentence
–noun
1. a sharp point.
2. a small, pointed process growing from the bark of a plant.
3. a sharp process or projection, as from the skin of an animal; a spine.
4. a pricking sensation.
–verb (used with object)
5. to prick lightly.
6. to cause a pricking or tingling sensation in.
–verb (used without object)
7. to tingle as if pricked.
Origin:
bef. 950; ME prykel (n.), OE pricel. See prick, -le
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To prickle
prick·le   (prĭk'əl)   
n.  

  1. A small sharp point, spine, or thorn.

  2. A tingling or pricking sensation.

v.   prick·led, prick·ling, prick·les

v.   tr.

  1. To prick as if with a thorn.

  2. To cause a tingling or pricking sensation in.

v.   intr.

  1. To feel a tingling or pricking sensation.

  2. To rise or stand up like prickles.


[Middle English prikel, from Old English pricel.]
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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Word Origin & History

prickle 
O.E. pricel "thing to prick with," from the same source as O.E. prician (see prick) with W.Gmc. instrumental suffix *-islja (cf. M.L.G. prickel, Du. prikkel). Prickly "spiny, armed with prickles" is from 1578 (originally of holly leaves); fig. sense of "irritable" first recorded 1862. Prickly heat is from 1736, so called for the sensation; prickly pear is from 1760.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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