thorny
UK /ˈθɔːni/ · US /ˈθɔɹni/ adjective
Forms thornier thorniest
- adjective (literally) Having thorns or spines.
- adjective Troublesome or vexatious. “thorny issues”
- adjective Aloof and irritable.
Synonyms
prickly spiny barbed barbellate briary briery bristled bristly burred burry setose setaceous
Etymology
From Middle English thorny, þorny, þorni, from Old English þorniġ, from Proto-West Germanic *þornag. By surface analysis, thorn + -y.
Webster’s 1913
- adjective Full of thorns or spines; rough with thorns; spiny; as, a thorny wood; a thorny tree; a thorny crown.
- adjective Like a thorn or thorns; hence, figuratively, troublesome; vexatious; harassing; perplexing. "The thorny point of bare distress." Shak.
Etymology [Cf. AS. þorniht.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “thorny”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details