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Synonyms

prickly

American  
[prik-lee] / ˈprɪk li /

adjective

pricklier, prickliest

  1. full of or armed with prickles.

  2. full of troublesome points.

    a prickly problem.

  3. prickling; smarting.

    a prickly sensation.
prickly British  
/ ˈprɪklɪ /

adjective

  1. having or covered with prickles

  2. stinging or tingling

  3. bad-tempered or irritable

  4. full of difficulties; knotty

    a prickly problem
"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • prickliness noun
  • unprickly adjective

Etymology

Origin of prickly

First recorded in 1570–80; prickle + -y 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

As a result, suit tampering has long been a prickly issue…

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 7, 2026

Driving around Raub, a small town in Malaysia, it's impossible to miss the prickly fruit that powers its economy.

From BBC • Jan. 10, 2026

Impressive world building gives a visceral texture to the environment that reflects the prickly emotions by those used, abused and cast off, who then reclaim their power by banding together.

From Salon • Dec. 19, 2025

Others put up fences and prickly shrubbery to deter loiterers.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 26, 2025

I chased him into a clearing, where he hopped into a prickly bush.

From "Moon Over Manifest" by Clare Vanderpool

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.