Noun
I need a needle and thread to sew the button on your shirt.
The needle on the scale points to 9 grams.
The compass needle points north. Verb
His classmates needled him about his new haircut.
we needled him mercilessly for thinking that he had any chance of being the prom date for the school's most popular girl
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Noun
Occasional shots won’t move the needle much, but adding them regularly—without overdoing it—can complement an already balanced diet.—Kathleen Ferraro, Verywell Health, 29 Aug. 2025 Some submissions tried to thread the needle between tradition and reinvention.—Jasmine Baehr, FOXNews.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Verb
Resentment soon starts needling away at them as Theo goes over budget and Ivy feels her role as a mother has been usurped — the kids are now too health-conscious even to touch her desserts.—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2025 Musk needled the president further on social media, insinuating the Trump administration was doing little regarding the Epstein case.—Julia Mueller, The Hill, 8 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for needle
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Middle English nedle, from Old English nǣdl; akin to Old High German nādala needle, nājan to sew, Latin nēre to spin, Greek nēn
First Known Use
Noun
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
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