crown of thorns

noun

1. a succulent flowering plant, Euphorbia milii, of the spurge family, with densely spiny stems that climb and scramble over other vegetation: native to Madagascar, the species and its numerous varieties are widely cultivated for gardens and as houseplants.
2. crown-of-thorns starfish ( def ).
3. a painful burden, as of suffering, guilt, anxiety, etc.: from the wreath of thorns placed on Jesus' head in the Bible.

crown-of-thorns

noun

1. a starfish, Acanthaster planci, that has a spiny test and feeds on living coral in coral reefs
2. Also calledChrist's thorn a thorny euphorbiaceous Madagascan shrub, Euphorbia milii var. splendens, cultivated as a hedging shrub or pot plant, having flowers with scarlet bracts

crown of thorns

1. A mock crown, made from thorn branches, that Roman soldiers put on the head of Jesus before the Crucifixion . The soldiers also “bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, ‘Hail, King of the Jews (see also Jews )!’”

Notes

In common usage, a “crown of thorns” may be anything that causes intense suffering: “The jailed political leader bears her afflictions like a crown of thorns.” Similar to the expression “cross to bear.” ( See Crucifixion .)

Word History and Origins

Origin of crown of thorns¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English

Example Sentences

He points to a sticker pasted to the sales counter: It depicts Trump kneeling in prayer, next to an American flag and Jesus with his crown of thorns.

From Slate

Like that David Fincher movie, “Grotesquerie” wraps its ills in a grimy, nocturnal film, and tops them with a crown of thorns.

From Los Angeles Times

"Having behind us the commercial interests and the laboring interests and all the toiling masses, we shall answer their demands for a gold standard by saying to them, you shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns. You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold."

From Salon

The man in black’s subtle “I wear this crown of thorns” lyric tweak felt like a serendipitous nod to the late Andrew Wood of Mother Love Bone, the Pearl Jam antecedent whose best-known song was “Crown of Thorns.”

From Seattle Times

Religious relics, including pieces of what is said to be Jesus Christ’s Crown of Thorns, are placed in a time capsule inside the golden bird.

From Seattle Times