thorn
English edit
Etymology edit
From Middle English thorn, þorn, from Old English þorn, from Proto-West Germanic *þornu, from Proto-Germanic *þurnuz, from Proto-Indo-European *tr̥nós, from *(s)ter- (“stiff”).
cognates
Near cognates include West Frisian toarn, Low German Doorn, Dutch doorn, German Dorn, Danish and Norwegian torn, Swedish torn, törne, Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽𐌿𐍃 (þaurnus). Further cognates include Old Church Slavonic трънъ (trŭnŭ, “thorn”), Russian тёрн (tjorn), Polish cierń, Kamkata-viri taňí, taí (“thorn”), Sanskrit तृण (tṛ́ṇa, “grass”).
Pronunciation edit
- (UK) IPA(key): /θɔːn/
Audio (UK) (file)
- (US) IPA(key): /θoɹn/, [θo̞ɹn]
Audio (US) (file)
- Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)n
Noun edit
thorn (plural thorns)
- (botany) A sharp protective spine of a plant.
- 1895, J[ohn] W[esley] Powell, chapter I, in Canyons of the Colorado, Meadville, PA: Flood & Vincent; republished as The Exploration of the Colorado River and Its Canyons, New York: Dover, 1961, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 22:
- On the mountains a few junipers and piñons are found, and cactuses, agave, and yuccas, low, fleshy plants with bayonets and thorns.
- Any shrub or small tree that bears thorns, especially a hawthorn.
- the white thorn
- the cockspur thorn
- (figurative) That which pricks or annoys; anything troublesome.
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Corinthians 12:7:
- There was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me.
- 1692–1717, Robert South, Twelve Sermons Preached upon Several Occasions, 6th edition, volumes (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: […] J[ames] Bettenham, for Jonah Bowyer, […], published 1727, →OCLC:
- The guilt of empire, all its thorns and cares, / Be only mine.
- A letter of Latin script (capital: Þ, small: þ), borrowed from the futhark; today used only in Icelandic to represent the voiceless dental fricative, but originally used in several early Germanic scripts, including Old English where it represented the dental fricatives that are today written th (Old English did not have phonemic voicing distinctions for fricatives).
- See also Etymology of ye (definite article).
Derived terms edit
- bastard umbrella thorn
- blackthorn
- boxthorn
- buckthorn
- buffalo thorn
- camelthorn
- Christ's thorn
- crucifixion thorn
- desert-thorn
- Egyptian thorn
- every rose has a thorn
- every rose has its thorn
- firethorn
- garland thorn
- Glastonbury thorn
- goat's thorn
- hookthorn
- Jerusalem thorn
- Karoo thorn
- knobthorn
- maythorn
- monkey thorn
- Mysore thorn
- no rose without a thorn
- sandthorn
- September thorn
- sweet thorn
- thorn apple
- thorn-apple crystal
- thornback
- thornbill
- thornbird
- thorn broom (Calicotome spp.)
- thornbush
- thorn cluster
- thorn devil (Moloch horridus)
- thornen
- thornery
- thornfish
- thorn forest
- thornhead
- thornhog
- thorn hopper (Centrotus cornutus)
- thorn in one's side
- thorn in someone's side
- thorn in the flesh
- thornless
- thornlet
- thornlike
- thornproof
- thorntail
- Thornton
- thorn tree
- thorn-tree
- thornveld
- thorny
- umbrella thorn
- whitethorn
- yellowthorn
Translations edit
sharp protective spine of a plant
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any shrub or small tree that bears thorns
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letter of the Latin alphabet (Þ, þ)
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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Verb edit
thorn (third-person singular simple present thorns, present participle thorning, simple past and past participle thorned)
- To pierce with, or as if with, a thorn (sharp pointed object).
- 1869, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Old Town Folks[1]:
- […] human nature is, above all things, lazy, and needs to be thorned and goaded up those heights where it ought to fly.
- 2003, Scott D. Zachary, Scorn This, page 175:
- Even Judge Bradley's callused sentiments were thorned by the narration of Jaclyn's journals.
Translations edit
to pierce with, or as if with, a thorn
See also edit
Further reading edit
thorn on Wikipedia.Wikipedia - Thorns, spines, and prickles on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- Thorn (letter) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Anagrams edit
Middle English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Inherited from Old English þorn, from Proto-West Germanic *þorn, from Proto-Germanic *þurnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *tr̥nós.
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
thorn (plural thornes)
- A thorn (spine on a plant with a sharp point)
- Thorn or eth (the letter þ and/or ð)
- A plant having thorns, especially the hawthorn or rosebush.
- (rare) Thorns pulled from the ground for burning.
- (rare) A dish incorporating hawthorn.
Derived terms edit
Descendants edit
References edit
- “thorn, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-09-12.
Old Saxon edit
Etymology edit
From Proto-West Germanic *þornu (“thorn, sloe”).
Cognates
Germanic cognates include Old English þorn (English thorn), Dutch doorn, Old High German thorn (German Dorn), Old Norse þorn (Swedish törne), Gothic 𐌸𐌰𐌿𐍂𐌽𐌿𐍃 (þaurnus). The Indo-European root is also the source of Old Church Slavonic трънъ (trŭnŭ) (Russian тёрн (tjorn, “sloe, blackthorn”)), Sanskrit तृण (tṛṇa, “grass”).
Pronunciation edit
Noun edit
thorn m
- thorn; thorny bush
Declension edit
Declension of thorn (masculine a-stem)
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | thorn | thornos |
| accusative | thorn | thornos |
| genitive | thornes | thornō |
| dative | thorne | thornum |
| instrumental | — | — |