1
2
as in irritable
easily irritated or annoyed
she dreaded having to deal with her prickly boss
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
4
as in difficult
requiring exceptional skill or caution in performance or handling
a prickly issue that will outrage at least one special interest if not handled delicately
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of prickly
Finally, Trump’s own views on NATO – often a prickly subject for the famously transactional president – saw a reversal.
—
Joseph Ataman, CNN Money, 25 June 2025
His focus is Pinot Noirs and Riesling, which speaks volumes about his precision - those are two of the wine world’s most prestigious and prickliest grapes.
—Kate Dingwall, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
Dickinson gives us nonjudgmental access to the day-to-day existence of one among any number of unhoused addicts, while Dillane presents Mike with all the prickly edges of a societal reject.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2025
And my body is stinging as prickly flares of embarrassment radiate from my ribs.
—A'lelia Bundles
june 11, Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Joseph Ataman, CNN Money, 25 June 2025
His focus is Pinot Noirs and Riesling, which speaks volumes about his precision - those are two of the wine world’s most prestigious and prickliest grapes.
—Kate Dingwall, Forbes.com, 30 June 2025
Dickinson gives us nonjudgmental access to the day-to-day existence of one among any number of unhoused addicts, while Dillane presents Mike with all the prickly edges of a societal reject.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2025
And my body is stinging as prickly flares of embarrassment radiate from my ribs.
—A'lelia Bundles
june 11, Literary Hub, 11 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prickly
Adjective
-
If certain emulsifiers are especially gentle on the gut, the food industry could use them to replace the ones that might be more irritating.—
Yasmin Tayag,
The Atlantic,
25 June 2025
-
But, there are also some unnecessary (potentially irritating) extras—eucalyptus oil, parfum, and benzyl alcohol.—
Boutayna Chokrane,
Wired News,
24 June 2025
Adjective
-
Determined to make a clean SPF, Brown says a chemical formula was out of the question (chemical sunscreens are often thought to be unsafe for the coral reef and irritable to sensitive skin types).—
Kiana Murden,
Vogue,
9 July 2025
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In my own experience, poor sleep has frequently been the reason behind feeling tired and irritable.—
Dr. Jamin Brahmbhatt,
CNN Money,
8 July 2025
Adjective
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That said, the negative reputation surrounding the last lines in Jones’ thorny adaptation — a punch-up from Ellison’s original text that’s meaner and more sexist, no doubt — seems outsized.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
11 July 2025
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However, women's health tech and privacy is a thorny issue.—
Emily Forlini,
PC Magazine,
11 July 2025
Adjective
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Ullmann is the daughter of the late Swedish director Ingmar Bergman and the Norwegian actor Liv Ullmann, and specifics of her childhood are not difficult to locate.—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
The Atlantic,
15 July 2025
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In a region where resources can be difficult to access and censorship persists, the initiative provided more than support.—
Essie Assibu,
Variety,
15 July 2025
Adjective
-
Turn four, in particular, put on a display of fiery orange and red, visible to the naked eye.—
Kristin Shaw,
ArsTechnica,
10 July 2025
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After surviving a fiery car wreck and successfully skipping his final year of high school to enroll at USC, incoming star freshman Alijah Arenas should be cleared to join the team for practice on Thursday, coach Eric Musselman confirmed.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 July 2025
Adjective
-
In a profession that lives at the jagged edge of justice and humanity, showing up matters.—
Sonia Singh,
Rolling Stone,
10 July 2025
-
The end of the branch shows a smooth cut, but the bark layer has a jagged appearance.—
Tim Johnson,
Chicago Tribune,
5 July 2025
Adjective
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And new privacy legislation in Senate Bill 1295 requires collectors of sensitive data to notify consumers if their personal data is being used to train large language models.—
Angela Eichhorst,
Hartford Courant,
15 July 2025
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In Cisco’s 2025 Data Privacy Benchmark, 64% of global respondents worry about inadvertently exposing sensitive information through AI tools, even as nearly half admit to feeding personal data into them.—
Boris Dzhingarov,
Forbes.com,
15 July 2025
Adjective
-
For every high-quality pair, there’s a dozen more with flimsy fasteners, scratchy fabric, and a poor fit.—
Sara Coughlin,
SELF,
2 July 2025
-
Say goodbye to the scratchy feel and five o’clock shadow.—
Nia Bowers,
USA Today,
23 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prickly. Accessed 23 Jul. 2025.
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