thicket

noun

thick·​et ˈthi-kət How to pronounce thicket (audio)
1
: a dense growth of shrubbery or small trees : copse
2
: something resembling a thicket in density or impenetrability : tangle
a political thicket
a thicket of reporters
thickety adjective

Examples of thicket in a Sentence

a dense thicket of rosebushes flushed a pheasant from a thicket of willows
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
After a scramble from Baltimore’s corner kick, Kerr’s header at the back post wormed through a thicket of defenders, and Cuthbert had the final touch. Cerys Jones, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025 As the narrator, a professor separated from his wife, obsessively researches the death, his investigation fuels his parenting and relationship woes and leads him into a thicket of conspiracy theories. The New Yorker, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2025 With deer lying tight in the thickets along the streams, stalking mistakes would be easy to make. Jim Moore, Outdoor Life, 8 Oct. 2025 The entire property bursts with thickets of shaggy palm trees, enormous birds of paradise, and other tropical plants. Sarah Buder, AFAR Media, 8 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for thicket

Word History

Etymology

Middle English *thikket, from Old English thiccet, from thicce thick

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of thicket was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Thicket.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thicket. Accessed 20 Oct. 2025.

Kids Definition

thicket

noun
thick·​et ˈthik-ət How to pronounce thicket (audio)
1
: a thick usually small patch of shrubbery, small trees, or underbrush
2
: something resembling a thicket in being crowded together or impenetrable
a thicket of fans

More from Merriam-Webster on thicket

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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