- thorny
- adj1. prickly, brambly, briery; bristly, Bot. strigose, Zool. barbellate, setigerous, setaceous, setose; spiny, spinous, spinulose, acanthoid, like a porcupine, thistlelike, aciculate; spiky, barbed, Bot., Zool. muricate, spiculate.2. thornlike, pointed, pointy, sharp, piercing.3. painful, trying, difficult, hard, tough, rough, arduous; troublesome, bothersome, annoying, irritating, vexatious, irksome, nettlesome.4. entangled, tangled, complicated, complex, intricate, involved, knotty; controversial, touchy, delicate, ticklish, critical.
A Note on the Style of the synonym finder. 2014.