Synonyms of spiny

spiny

adjective

ˈspī-nē 

as in difficult

requiring exceptional skill or caution in performance or handling

this promises to be a spiny problem to negotiate

Synonyms & Similar Words

• difficult
• tough
• sensitive
• hairy
• sticky
• thorny
• problematic
• complicated
• delicate
• prickly
• knotty
• nasty
• ticklish
• tricky
• touchy
• hard
• complex
• serious
• problem
• catchy
• painful
• dodgy
• tricksy
• intricate
• abstract
• scabrous
• stubborn
• recondite
• troublesome
• abstruse
• vexatious
• vexing
• involved
• worrisome
• troublous
• oppressive
• burdensome
• importunate
• onerous
• stressful
• inconvenient
• demanding
• exhausting
• exacting
• discommoding

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• simple
• manageable
• easy
• painless
• uncomplicated
• straightforward
• effortless
• undemanding
• unproblematic

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of spiny

In its place urchin barrens now carpet the seafloor; a spiny, silent landscape stripped of life. — Tatjana Baleta, Time, 28 May 2026

The spiny, long-legged, and often reviled cockroach has become an unlikely symbol of dissent among India’s Gen Z, in a sharp rebuke to the ruling establishment in the world’s largest democracy. — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 22 May 2026

If a creature is small enough to swallow and not spiny or sticky or otherwise resists Yoshi's tongue, it will be turned into a green egg that's the series standard. — Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 19 May 2026

Last year, Choudhury produced the film Wild London in which Attenborough — then aged 99 — shimmies on his belly to get eye-to-eye with the spiny mammal. — Lauren Frayer, NPR, 8 May 2026