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
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 prickly
Akio — a prickly, ambitious kid with a short backstory that includes being abandoned by his mother — dreams of shooting up through the rankings to fame and glory.
—
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Mar. 2025
Colorful flower buds, prickly bundles of herbs and stakes supporting leafy produce fill the garden.
—Sabrina Weiss, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
With a blunt cut (editing by Yang Hongyu), we are plunged into the goings-on of Film City, where Fang Di battles with a prickly director asking her to do another take of an action sequence.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2025
It’s abandoned now and has fallen into disrepair, with broken slats on the wood steps and prickly bushes growing over the front porch.
—Melinda Newman, Billboard, 4 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Mar. 2025
Colorful flower buds, prickly bundles of herbs and stakes supporting leafy produce fill the garden.
—Sabrina Weiss, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025
With a blunt cut (editing by Yang Hongyu), we are plunged into the goings-on of Film City, where Fang Di battles with a prickly director asking her to do another take of an action sequence.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Feb. 2025
It’s abandoned now and has fallen into disrepair, with broken slats on the wood steps and prickly bushes growing over the front porch.
—Melinda Newman, Billboard, 4 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prickly
Adjective
-
The key difference is that retinol is known for being harsh and drying, especially for sensitive skin, while bakuchiol is far less irritating.—
Angela Trakoshis,
Allure,
3 Mar. 2025
-
And if the girl keeps using the irritating products, prolonged inflammation is known to cause ongoing inappropriate fibroblast activity.—
Alison Escalante,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Strong winds also may have North Texans feeling more irritable, which scientists blame on there being too many positive ions in the air.—
Brayden Garcia,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
20 Mar. 2025
-
Signs of overextension burnout include feeling emotionally drained, becoming irritable and struggling to focus—all of which can affect both your work and personal life.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
When he was first announced as USC’s starting quarterback last November, Jayden Maiava stepped into a pretty thorny situation.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2025
-
That momentum continues today with the announcement of a $21 million Series A by Layer Health, an ambitious healthcare AI startup aiming to tackle some of the sector’s thorniest issues and overcome the industry’s biggest barriers to growth.—
Seth Joseph,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
There are very big match-ups being played week in and week out in what is one of the most difficult leagues to play in on the planet, this means the big contenders will drop points more often than in some other leagues.—
Joseph O'Sullivan,
Forbes.com,
1 Apr. 2025
-
Generations of design successors have insisted that pie charts are difficult to read and even amount to optical informatic illusions, but we are still stuck with them.—
Mara Mills,
Artforum,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
More than just Flagg’s multidimensional skillset, Gatorade viewed Flagg’s fiery competitiveness as a good fit for the brand.—
Jeff Fedotin,
Forbes,
23 Mar. 2025
-
Right main landing gear collapsed on impact in fiery Toronto plane crash: Preliminary report In total, 70 firefighters and 10 fire trucks responded to the blaze in west London when the brigade was first called at 11:23 p.m. local time Thursday.—
Jack Moore,
ABC News,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The lodge looked like a miniature in the shadow of the jagged mountains.—
Sophie Mendel,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Mar. 2025
-
Obviously, no one wants to go to a beach that’s covered in jagged space debris (or where such debris might rain down at any moment).—
Edward Woodson,
Orlando Sentinel,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The rise in interest rates and inflation could dampen the growth prospects of shale oil producers, particularly smaller companies that are highly sensitive to borrowing costs.—
Steven Dudash,
Forbes.com,
1 Apr. 2025
-
The business is also highly sensitive to energy prices and bitcoin price, two areas the president is able to influence through policy.—
Pete Gannon,
Axios,
31 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Typically lasting about a week, these include chronic cough, sneezing fits, runny nose, sinus pressure, headache, swollen lymph nodes, and hoarse (scratchy, raspy) voice.—
Mark Gurarie,
Health,
17 Mar. 2025
-
Some are snapshots — making paper airplanes, watching the Muppets, swimming in the ocean — while others more impressionistic: the smell of burning incense, the scratchy stubble on his father’s chin, the boney outline of his ankle, and the cold metal of his guitar strings.—
Jordan Runtagh,
People.com,
21 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Prickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prickly. Accessed 4 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share