thorn

/θɔːn/ (bre, ipa) · /θɔːrn/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈthȯrn/ (ame, mw)

thorn — noun

  • thornsingular
  • thornsplural

1. a short, hard, sharp-pointed part that grows on the stem or branch of certain pl

1.名詞B1
釋義

a short, hard, sharp-pointed part that grows on the stem or branch of certain plants, such as roses and blackberries, and can easily prick your skin.

例句

Mei-Lin pricked her finger on a rose thorn while arranging flowers for the dinner table.

Javier wore thick leather gloves to pull the weeds, because the old vines were covered in sharp thorns.

collocation: covered in thorns

同義詞
  • prickle

    usually refers to smaller, softer pointed growths like those on a nettle or bramble

  • spine

    a technical term used for pointed growths on cacti and some other plants

  • barb

    a sharp curved point that is angled backward, making it hard to pull out once stuck

文法句型

[countable] a ~ on a [plant]

用法筆記

Frequently appears after the name of the plant it comes from, as in rose thorn, cactus thorn, or hawthorn thorn.

常見錯誤

❌She touched the thorn and it was soft.
✅She touched the thorn and it pricked her finger.
💡Thorns are hard and sharply pointed, not soft.

2. a tree, bush, or shrub that produces many sharp prickles on its stems and branch

2.名詞B2
釋義

a tree, bush, or shrub that produces many sharp prickles on its stems and branches, often used to form hedges or natural barriers.

例句

A thick hedge of thorns surrounded the old farm and kept the cattle from wandering off.

countable: a hedge of thorns

Fatima planted a row of flowering thorns along the driveway to create a natural barrier.

同義詞
  • brier

    a prickly shrub, especially a wild rose bush, often used in rural contexts

  • scrub

    a general term for low, dense wild vegetation that may include thorny plants

文法句型

[countable] a ~

[compound] ~ + tree/bush/hedge

用法筆記

Often appears as part of compound plant names, such as hawthorn, blackthorn, and buckthorn, which identify specific species of thorny shrubs or trees.

常見錯誤

❌The garden has a thorn.' (meaning a thorny plant)
✅The garden has a thorn bush.' or 'The garden has a thorn hedge.
💡Sense 2 refers to the whole plant, not a single prickle; use a compound or descriptive phrase to be clear.

3. a person or issue that repeatedly bothers you, creates difficulties, or prevents

3.名詞B2
釋義

a person or issue that repeatedly bothers you, creates difficulties, or prevents you from making progress.

例句

The unresolved tax dispute has been a thorn in Amara's side for more than two years.

idiomatic: a thorn in [someone's] side

Kwame's loud upstairs neighbour was a thorn in his side that ruined his sleep every night.

idiomatic: a thorn in his side

同義詞
  • nuisance

    a more general, less vivid word for something annoying; lacks the image of a persistent pricking pain

  • irritant

    formal or technical term for something that causes mild but ongoing frustration

  • source of vexation

    a more formal, literary-sounding alternative

反義詞
  • comfort

    something that brings ease and reassurance, rather than ongoing irritation

  • blessing

    an unexpected good thing, opposite in emotional impact to a thorn

文法句型

a ~ in [possessive] side

用法筆記

Almost always appears in the fixed expression a thorn in someone's side (or occasionally flesh). The noun or person that follows in represents the person experiencing the annoyance.

常見錯誤

❌The loud music was a thorn on my head.
✅The loud music was a thorn in my side.
💡The correct fixed expression is 'a thorn in someone's side', not 'on one's head' or other body parts.

4. a character (þ) from an early Germanic alphabet, used in Old English and Iceland

4.名詞C1
釋義

a character (þ) from an early Germanic alphabet, used in Old English and Icelandic to write the sounds now spelled as 'th' in modern English.

例句

In the Old English manuscript, the scribe used a thorn at the start of the word "the."

Bjorn learned that the Icelandic word for 'you' still begins with the letter thorn, written as 'þú'.

modern usage: still used in Icelandic

同義詞
  • þ

    the graphic symbol itself, identical to the letter thorn

  • rune

    a broader category of early Germanic writing symbols, though thorn is technically a letter adapted from the runic alphabet

文法句型

the letter ~

~ represents [sound]

用法筆記

Distinguish from the letter eth (Ð, ð), which also represented /θ/ and /ð/ in Old English. Thorn was used at the beginning and end of words, while eth appeared in the middle. In modern Icelandic, thorn (þ) is still part of the alphabet.

常見錯誤

❌The word 'then' was spelled with a thorn in Old English.' (when the sound is correct but the position is wrong)
✅The word 'thorn' itself began with a thorn (þ) in Old English.
💡The letter was used for both /θ/ and /ð/ sounds, but the letter's name gives a clear example of its own initial sound.