prickles 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of prickle
as in pokes
to cause or experience an unpleasant feeling that is like the feeling of having many small, sharp points against your skin The burrs were prickling my arm. The wool sweater prickled my skin.

Related Words

Relevance

prickles

2 of 2

noun

plural of prickle
as in spikes

Related Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of prickles
Verb
An awareness of absent ancestors prickles through her writing, but at the same time, her fictional worlds feel solid and present. — Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prickles
  1. pokes
  2. spikes
  3. pierces
  4. barbs
  5. stings
  6. snags
  7. holes
  8. stickers
Verb
  • Adults’s Gen-Z characters tend to see their comforts as transient, their identities as mutable, and seriousness as an annoying obligation, all of which the second season pokes at a bit.
    — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Even in the bathrooms, the toilet and bidet are concealed inside a kind of Travertine bench and the showerhead pokes out from a monolithic stone slab.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of pokes
Noun
  • The team identified a continuous midline feature that began as a fleshy crest along the neck and trunk and transitioned over the hips into a single row of spikes running down the tail — each spike positioned over a single vertebra and fitted to each other.
    — Abhishek Bhardwaj, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
Definition of spikes
Verb
  • An ice sculpture of a heart includes a tube through the ice arrow that pierces the heart.
    — Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 10 July 2026
  • And who the f--- pierces a 12 year old?
    — Desiree Anello, PEOPLE, 24 May 2026
Definition of pierces
Noun
  • Officials from both governments have traded barbs in recent weeks over whether China has been inappropriately stealing AI trade secrets.
    — Kevin Collier, NBC news, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Two of the highest-ranking law enforcement officials in California are publicly sparring over the integrity of state elections, trading barbs on social media that highlight the fierce partisan divide on the issue heading into the November midterms.
    — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of barbs
Verb
  • There is a feeling of humiliation that stings long after an event has passed.
    — Wilbert L. Cooper, Longreads, 25 Aug. 2026
  • February 19 – March 20 Your words may show where being misunderstood still stings.
    — Tarot.com, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of stings
Noun
  • Gurman claims the foldable is still on track for this fall, despite chatter about manufacturing snags.
    — Kimberly Gedeon, PC Magazine, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Remove Bits and Bobs Be sure to remove pins or buckles from clothing items before placing them in the washer—zip the zippers on your clothing, close snaps and hooks, and secure Velcro to prevent snags and abrasion.
    — Madeline Buiano, Martha Stewart, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of snags
Verb
  • Upgrade a Laundry Room Vent holes in a laundry room might call to mind a traditional airing cupboard, but perhaps counterintuitively, that term actually refers to a heated cupboard for keeping towels dry rather than one in which air freely circulates.
    — Monika Biegler Eyers, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 June 2026
  • Caulk holes around plumbing and sewer lines where roaches are likely to enter.
    — Arricca Elin SanSone, Southern Living, 4 June 2026
Definition of holes
Noun
  • But the prices for the vast majority of stickers are pretty low, which means that no vulture is out there buying up all the sticker packs and trying to resell them at inflated prices to impressionable children hoping to win the lottery.
    — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 30 June 2026
Definition of stickers

Browse Nearby Words

prickled
prickles
prickling
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Prickles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prickles. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of hobnob

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All