thicket

noun

thick·​et ˈthi-kət 

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

ˈthi-kə-tē 

adjective

Synonyms of thicket

• forest
• copse
• grove
• bush
• brushwood
• coppice
• chaparral
• tangle
• brake
• jungle

Examples of thicket in a Sentence

a dense thicket of rosebushes

flushed a pheasant from a thicket of willows

Recent Examples on the Web

The retaliation works, and soon Cole and his men are marching on foot, scrabbling their way through thickets and swamps. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026

Across the street, the Llano River splashes its way over limestone formations and into reed thickets. — Pam Leblanc, Southern Living, 20 July 2026

That lack of standardization leads to layers of bureaucracy for patients; moving to a new plan can ensnare patients in a thicket of red tape, keeping them from care. — Renuka Rayasam, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 July 2026

These traits alone don’t make this tree invasive, but the trees began cross-pollinating with other pear species, whose offspring create thorny thickets that smother native plants and habitat. — Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 July 2026

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

Rhymes for thicket

• chicot
• cricket
• picket
• picot
• ticket
• wicket

Kids Definition

thicket

noun

thick·​et ˈthik-ət 

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