prickly
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.
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Mungiu’s prickly, nonjudgmental studies of human behavior have sometimes led him to be branded as a provocateur.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026
The initiative comes as France is seeking to improve relations with Africa, particularly in former colonies with which it has prickly ties.
From Barron's ● Sep. 4, 2026
All action, high-octane performances, adored by his fans yet prickly under pressure.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
It says a prickly desert plant called hesperaloe produces fiber that can make stronger and softer paper products.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 4, 2026
The stubble of weeds was prickly under my feet.
From "Nory Ryan’s Song" by Patricia Reilly Giff
And now there are circumstances to navigate that are pricklier than the actors’ five o’clock shadows.
From Salon ● Nov. 24, 2025
The second Stanford was a colder, pricklier place that lived inside students’ minds.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025
It also put a spotlight on a global trade and obsession — think of Susan Orlean‘s “The Orchid Thief” on a worldwide scale, and with a pricklier quarry.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 17, 2023
His new, pricklier show deconstructs that persona, telling the audience right from the start how he ingratiates himself, before asking them how they want their takes delivered.
From New York Times ● Oct. 13, 2022
Things have been pricklier with Edna since she got in trouble, but I’m trying my best to ignore it and move on.
From "Merci Suárez Changes Gears" by Meg Medina
At its prickliest, this is a film about the ways social niceties can mask deep distrust and dark pasts — which still have a way of surfacing eventually.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2023
But the prickliest part of their schedule still lay ahead.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 18, 2023
Defence and security is among the prickliest topics in the continuing debate over Scottish independence and would likely be a defining issue in any future referendum campaign.
From BBC ● May 18, 2022
Berhe did not receive the prickliest questions from the committee.
From Science Magazine ● Aug. 3, 2021
She'd set over a roarin' fire in the cook-stove even in the prickliest o' the dog-days.
From Timothy's Quest A Story for Anybody, Young or Old, Who Cares to Read It by Kate Douglas Smith Wiggin
Vocabulary lists containing prickly
"American Names"
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"Terrible Things"
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Spelling Practice, Unit 5
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