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
But the Path of Exile community is also pretty prickly, and many are calling for GGG to take action against him for boosting or account sharing as that’s against TOS and other players would be banned for it.
—
Paul Tassi, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
Tingly Foods Sichuan Pepper Peanuts Red and green Sichuan peppercorns pack a prickly punch in this crunchy snack, perfect alongside a cold, crisp beer.
—Megan Zhang, Saveur, 13 Nov. 2024
Page after page, her writing is full of humor built around prickly sarcasm and woebegone twists in George’s life.
—Kendal Weaver, Boston Herald, 13 Oct. 2024
As a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Biden tried to smooth over rough patches between Carter and foreign leaders, particularly the prickly German chancellor.
—Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY, 30 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Paul Tassi, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2025
Tingly Foods Sichuan Pepper Peanuts Red and green Sichuan peppercorns pack a prickly punch in this crunchy snack, perfect alongside a cold, crisp beer.
—Megan Zhang, Saveur, 13 Nov. 2024
Page after page, her writing is full of humor built around prickly sarcasm and woebegone twists in George’s life.
—Kendal Weaver, Boston Herald, 13 Oct. 2024
As a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Biden tried to smooth over rough patches between Carter and foreign leaders, particularly the prickly German chancellor.
—Maureen Groppe, USA TODAY, 30 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for prickly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prickly
Adjective
-
Surprisingly no one in my family finds this irritating.—
Sherry Kuehl,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2025
-
In layman's terms, retinal works faster and is less irritating than retinol.—
Sarah Han,
Allure,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
This misalignment impairs your sleep and concentration, and can leave you feeling irritable.—
Mackenzie Gamble,
The Conversation,
10 Feb. 2025
-
Here’s one way to take your mind off a certain election that seems to have everyone tense and irritable these days — consider that Tahoe ski season is almost here.—
Randy McMullen,
The Mercury News,
31 Oct. 2024
Adjective
-
Republicans in the Senate have essentially delayed any decision on those thorny details, focusing instead on delivering an early win to Mr. Trump in the form of money for his hard-line anti-immigration agenda.—
Catie Edmondson,
New York Times,
21 Feb. 2025
-
Plus, there is the thorny issue of when, and how hard, to push back on Trump; governments know that rupturing that relationship might play into Moscow’s hands.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN,
20 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Stars of Durant’s stature can be notoriously difficult to pin down for interviews.—
Darnell Mayberry,
The Athletic,
23 Feb. 2025
-
But breaking with Russian gas has been difficult for Austria, which until recently was one of a handful of European countries to keep importing the fuel by pipeline.—
Stanley Reed,
New York Times,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
And a Delta plane flipped upside down in a fiery crash landing at a Toronto airport, injuring 21 people.—
Melissa Chan,
NBC News,
27 Feb. 2025
-
The relationship between the show’s actual composers and the admirer-pirates has been fiery at times.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
26 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Sea oats and fir trees dance in the breeze as seagulls squawk in a bright blue sky and the mighty Pacific crashes against the jagged shoreline a few dozen yards away.—
Blane Bachelor,
AFAR Media,
12 Feb. 2025
-
The neck’s jagged base suggests that the head was torn from a larger, perhaps full-length figure, but the sculpture reveals almost no other significant damage.—
Christopher Knight,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
This question asks for personal sensitive information that is protected by privacy laws.—
Terry Parris Jr.,
New York Times,
23 Feb. 2025
-
Many fractional leaders work across industries or sign non-compete agreements to avoid working with direct competitors, but companies must establish clear expectations to protect sensitive information.—
Dr. Diane Hamilton,
Forbes,
23 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Like linen, hemp is a strong fiber that can be a little bit scratchy.—
Kathleen Felton,
Better Homes & Gardens,
4 Nov. 2024
-
Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier: on sale for $39.99 Original price: $49.99 (Amazon) A humidifier can help with dry coughs, congestion, nose bleeds, itchy eyes and scratchy throats.—
Nora Colomer,
Fox News,
5 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prickly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prickly. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share