prickly
adjective /ˈprɪk.l̩.i/ /-li/Definition
› covered with prickles: Chestnuts had burst out of their prickly green husks. I find this sweater a bit prickly (= it makes the skin sore).Sharp and blunt › informal unfriendly and slightly rude: She was asked a couple of questions about her private life and got a bit prickly.Not being friendlyNot saying muchBlunt and direct in speech and behaviourRude and cheekyRelating to sex and sexual desire
(Definition of prickly adjective from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus
© Cambridge University Press)
Browse related topics
You are looking at an entry to do with Not being friendly, but you might be interested in these topics from the Family and relationships topic area:
- Enemies & rivals
- Family: ancestors & descendants
- Family: informal names
- Family: non-blood relations
- Family: relations in general
- Friendly
- Friends, acquaintances & contemporaries
- Marriage, cohabitation & other relationships
- Marriage: marital status
- Relationships: ending & divorce
- Relationships: finding a partner
- Relationships: general words
- Relationships: infidelity
- Weddings
Browse the Thesaurus
More Results for “prickly”
SMART Thesaurus
Synonyms and related words:
- (at) daggers drawn idiom
- abrasive adjective (PERSON)
- aloof adjective
- antisocial adjective
- austere adjective
- brutal adjective
- give sb the time of day idiom
- gruff adjective
- hostile adjective (UNFRIENDLY)
- icy adjective (UNFRIENDLY)
- impersonal adjective
- inhospitable adjective (PERSON)
- offhand adjective
- offish adjective
- saturnine adjective
- sour adjective (BAD FEELING)
- wintry adjective (EXPRESSION)
- with friends like you, who needs enemies? idiom
- withdraw verb (STOP CONTACT)
- withdrawal noun (NO CONTACT)
Topic:
Not being friendly
You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Word of the Day
Blog
Read our blog about how the English language behaves.
New Words
Find words and meanings that have just started to be used in English, and let us know what you think of them.
