a sharp excrescence on a plant, especially a sharp-pointed aborted branch; spine; prickle.
any of various thorny shrubs or trees, especially the hawthorns belonging to the genus Crataegus, of the rose family.
the wood of any of these trees.
a runic character (þ), borrowed into the Latin alphabet and representing the initial th sounds in thin and they in Old English, or thin in modern Icelandic.
something that wounds, annoys, or causes discomfort.
verb (used with object)
to prick with a thorn; vex.
Idioms for thorn
thorn in one's side / flesh, a source of continual irritation or suffering: That child is a thorn in the teacher's side.
Origin of thorn
before 900; Middle English (noun), Old English; cognate with Dutch doorn,German Dorn,Old Norse thorn,Gothic thaurnus
OTHER WORDS FROM thorn
thornless,adjectivethornlike,adjectiveun·thorn,verb (used with object)
Since iAd’s closure, Apple has become a thorn in the side of the online ad industry.
‘It’s the first time they’re listening’: Apple is striking a more conciliatory tone with the ad industry|Lara O'Reilly|September 8, 2020|Digiday
The Tampa Bay Rays gave New York a good fight early last season and were also a thorn in the Houston Astros’ side during the postseason.
Baseball Will Be Weird This Year. But The Astros And Yankees Are Favorites In The American League … Again.|Neil Paine (neil.paine@fivethirtyeight.com)|July 21, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Adorned with spikes and toxins, crown-of-thorns starfish aren’t an easy meal.
Fish poop exposes what eats the destructive crown-of-thorns starfish|Jake Buehler|June 8, 2020|Science News
Yet occasional starfish population booms suggest something is normally eating live, healthy crown-of-thorns and keeping their numbers in check.
Fish poop exposes what eats the destructive crown-of-thorns starfish|Jake Buehler|June 8, 2020|Science News
Some fish may be eating only the crown-of-thorns’ tiny, squishy larvae.
Fish poop exposes what eats the destructive crown-of-thorns starfish|Jake Buehler|June 8, 2020|Science News
Thorn also posted a video on his personal YouTube page wherein he desk-dances to Taylor Swift.
Jimmy Kimmel Pranks Kids (Again), Taylor Swift’s 1989 Aerobics, and More Viral Videos|The Daily Beast Video|November 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
That freedom has been a thorn in the side of many cardinals who feel the sisters should be more conservative.
American Nuns Hope For Sister-Friendly New Pope|Barbie Latza Nadeau|February 13, 2013|DAILY BEAST
A tabletop bronze of a boy pulling a thorn from his foot, made around 1500 by the Renaissance sculptor known as Antico.
A Roman Boy-Toy Gets a Dye Job|Blake Gopnik|January 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
For more than 40 years now, Norwegian director Vibeke Løkkeberg has relished being a thorn in the side of authorities.
In ‘Tears of Gaza,’ Vibeke Løkkeberg Focuses on Children of War|Lorenza Muñoz|September 21, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Senator Blanche Lincoln was a thorn in the Democrats' side during the health-care debate.
Will Blanche Lincoln Oppose the Dems Again?|Benjamin Sarlin|April 12, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Then we went, but as I passed through the thorn trees I turned and looked at Sihamba, and lo!
Swallow|H. Rider Haggard
She starts low down among the plants, thorn and thistle, gorse and cactus.
"Wee Tim'rous Beasties"|Douglas English
One of them described a circle round the thorn, within which the plough should not go.
The Fairy Mythology|Thomas Keightley
The King tossed his head proudly and observed: “Who would not play the thorn with two such buds to blush on either side?”
Mistress Nell|George C. Hazelton, Jr.
I grieve over it off and on, a kind of thorn in de flesh, my husband used to say.
Slave Narratives: a Folk History of Slavery in the United States From Interviews with Former Slaves|Work Projects Administration
British Dictionary definitions for thorn (1 of 2)
thorn
/ (θɔːn) /
noun
a sharp pointed woody extension of a stem or leafCompare prickle (def. 1)
any of various trees or shrubs having thorns, esp the hawthorn
the wood of any of these plants
short for thorn moth
a Germanic character of runic origin Þ used in Old and Modern Icelandic to represent the voiceless dental fricative sound of th, as in thin, bath. Its use in phonetics for the same purpose is now obsoleteSee theta
this same character as used in Old and Middle English as an alternative to edh, but indistinguishable from it in function or soundCompare edh
zoologyany of various sharp spiny parts
a source of irritation (esp in the phrases a thorn in one's sideorflesh)
Derived forms of thorn
thornless, adjective
Word Origin for thorn
Old English; related to Old High German dorn, Old Norse thorn