"pricking" meaning in English

See pricking in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Adjective

IPA: /ˈpɹɪkɪŋ/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-pricking.wav [Southern-England] Forms: more pricking [comparative], most pricking [superlative]
Rhymes: -ɪkɪŋ Head templates: {{en-adj}} pricking (comparative more pricking, superlative most pricking)
  1. That pricks; pricky Derived forms: prickingly
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-adj-bOs1Aab1 Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 23 27 2 4 4 20 19 1 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 26 27 3 2 3 18 20 1 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 27 25 2 2 3 19 21 1

Noun

IPA: /ˈpɹɪkɪŋ/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-pricking.wav [Southern-England] Forms: prickings [plural]
Rhymes: -ɪkɪŋ Head templates: {{en-noun|~}} pricking (countable and uncountable, plural prickings)
  1. The act of piercing or puncturing with a sharp point. Tags: countable, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-EP4Khmqe Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 23 27 2 4 4 20 19 1 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 26 27 3 2 3 18 20 1 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 27 25 2 2 3 19 21 1
  2. (figurative) A sensation that pricks, or causes sharp emotional pain. Tags: countable, figuratively, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-unK5AwlS
  3. The driving of a nail into a horse's foot so as to produce lameness. Tags: countable, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-5fyDbVIf
  4. (mining, archaic) A nicking. Tags: archaic, countable, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-tIoxHnMW Categories (other): Mining Topics: business, mining
  5. (hunting, archaic) The tracking of a hare by its footprints. Tags: archaic, countable, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-Ek13ujN5 Categories (other): Hunting, English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 23 27 2 4 4 20 19 1 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 26 27 3 2 3 18 20 1 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 27 25 2 2 3 19 21 1 Topics: hobbies, hunting, lifestyle
  6. (obsolete) Dressing oneself for show; prinking. Tags: countable, obsolete, uncountable
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-noun-H-LmjGuV Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 23 27 2 4 4 20 19 1 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 26 27 3 2 3 18 20 1 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 27 25 2 2 3 19 21 1
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: pricking at the belt, pricking-up

Verb

IPA: /ˈpɹɪkɪŋ/ Audio: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-pricking.wav [Southern-England]
Rhymes: -ɪkɪŋ Head templates: {{head|en|verb form}} pricking
  1. present participle and gerund of prick Tags: form-of, gerund, participle, present Form of: prick
    Sense id: en-pricking-en-verb-kwTiESgA

Inflected forms

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  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
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      "tags": [
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    },
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          "_dis": "23 27 2 4 4 20 19 1",
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        "That pricks; pricky"
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      "links": [
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          "pricky"
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{
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      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0 0",
      "word": "pricking at the belt"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "0 0 0 0 0 0",
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    }
  ],
  "forms": [
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      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
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          "text": "The prickings of thorns",
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      ],
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        "The act of piercing or puncturing with a sharp point."
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      "id": "en-pricking-en-noun-EP4Khmqe",
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          "text": "the prickings of conscience",
          "type": "example"
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      ],
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        "A sensation that pricks, or causes sharp emotional pain."
      ],
      "id": "en-pricking-en-noun-unK5AwlS",
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        "(figurative) A sensation that pricks, or causes sharp emotional pain."
      ],
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        "countable",
        "figuratively",
        "uncountable"
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          "type": "quotation"
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      "glosses": [
        "The driving of a nail into a horse's foot so as to produce lameness."
      ],
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          "nail",
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        [
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          "horse"
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          "foot",
          "foot"
        ],
        [
          "lameness",
          "lameness"
        ]
      ],
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        "countable",
        "uncountable"
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    },
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          "kind": "other",
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          "name": "Mining",
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          "type": "quotation"
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      ],
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        "A nicking."
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        "(mining, archaic) A nicking."
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        "mining"
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      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The tracking of a hare by its footprints."
      ],
      "id": "en-pricking-en-noun-Ek13ujN5",
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          "hunting",
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        [
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        [
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          "footprint"
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      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(hunting, archaic) The tracking of a hare by its footprints."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic",
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "hobbies",
        "hunting",
        "lifestyle"
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      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Dressing oneself for show; prinking."
      ],
      "id": "en-pricking-en-noun-H-LmjGuV",
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        [
          "show",
          "show"
        ],
        [
          "prink",
          "prink"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(obsolete) Dressing oneself for show; prinking."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "obsolete",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
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      "ipa": "/ˈpɹɪkɪŋ/"
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{
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    "English countable nouns",
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    "English verb forms",
    "English verbal nouns",
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    "Rhymes:English/ɪkɪŋ",
    "Rhymes:English/ɪkɪŋ/2 syllables"
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  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "verb",
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        "present participle and gerund of prick"
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        "present"
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    {
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        "superlative"
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        "That pricks; pricky"
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          "text": "The prickings of thorns",
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      ],
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        "The act of piercing or puncturing with a sharp point."
      ],
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        "English terms with usage examples"
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          ],
          "text": "the prickings of conscience",
          "type": "example"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A sensation that pricks, or causes sharp emotional pain."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(figurative) A sensation that pricks, or causes sharp emotional pain."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "figuratively",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
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          "ref": "1841, Richard Mason, The Gentleman's New Pocket Farrier:",
          "text": "THE pricking a horse has proved to be as useless an operation as it is simple, seldom or never having the desired effect; consequently the practice should be abolished",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The driving of a nail into a horse's foot so as to produce lameness."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "nail",
          "nail"
        ],
        [
          "horse",
          "horse"
        ],
        [
          "foot",
          "foot"
        ],
        [
          "lameness",
          "lameness"
        ]
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with archaic senses",
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        "en:Mining"
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        {
          "bold_text_offsets": [
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            ]
          ],
          "ref": "1906, George Mitcheson Bailes, Modern Mining Practice:",
          "text": "No better material can be used than seggar or underclay prickings",
          "type": "quotation"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A nicking."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "mining",
          "mining#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "nicking",
          "nicking"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(mining, archaic) A nicking."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic",
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "business",
        "mining"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with archaic senses",
        "en:Hunting"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The tracking of a hare by its footprints."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "hunting",
          "hunting#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "tracking",
          "track"
        ],
        [
          "footprint",
          "footprint"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(hunting, archaic) The tracking of a hare by its footprints."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic",
        "countable",
        "uncountable"
      ],
      "topics": [
        "hobbies",
        "hunting",
        "lifestyle"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with obsolete senses"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Dressing oneself for show; prinking."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "show",
          "show"
        ],
        [
          "prink",
          "prink"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(obsolete) Dressing oneself for show; prinking."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "countable",
        "obsolete",
        "uncountable"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈpɹɪkɪŋ/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-pricking.wav",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/a/a8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-pricking.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-pricking.wav.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/a/a8/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-pricking.wav/LL-Q1860_%28eng%29-Vealhurl-pricking.wav.ogg",
      "tags": [
        "Southern-England"
      ]
    },
    {
      "rhymes": "-ɪkɪŋ"
    }
  ],
  "word": "pricking"
}

Download raw JSONL data for pricking meaning in English (6.1kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-08-23 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-08-05 using wiktextract (872fc7b and 4deed51). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.