Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. Any of numerous weedy plants, chiefly of the genera Cirsium, Carduus, or Onopordum of the composite family, having prickly leaves and variously colored flower heads surrounded by prickly bracts.
- n. Any of various similar or related plants.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. One of numerous stout composite weeds, armed with spines or prickles, bearing globular or thickly cylindrical heads with purple, yellow, or white flowers and no rays, and dispersing their seed by the aid of a light globe of pappus. The name applies in general to the members of the genus Cnicus (including the former Cirsium), the common or plumed thistle, in which the pappus is plumose or feathered, of Carduus, the plumeless thistle, in which the pappus is simple, and of Onopordon, the cotton-thistle, also with qualifying words to plants of other genera.
- n. The artichoke.
- n. The wild lettuce, Lactuca Scariola, var. virosa.
- n. Same as blessed thistle.
Wiktionary
- n. Any of several perennial composite plants, especially of genera Cirsium, Carduus, Cynara or Onopordum, having prickly leaves and showy flower heads with prickly bracts.
- n. This plant seen as the national emblem of Scotland.
- n. The Order of the Thistle, or membership thereof.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. (Bot.) Any one of several prickly composite plants, especially those of the genera Cnicus, Craduus, and Onopordon. The name is often also applied to other prickly plants.
WordNet 3.0
- n. any of numerous plants of the family Compositae and especially of the genera Carduus and Cirsium and Onopordum having prickly-edged leaves
Etymologies
- From Old English þistel, from Proto-Germanic *þistilaz. *þīh- from *teyg-, which is a variant of Proto-Indo-European *steyg- (“to prick”); from this same Proto-Indo-European root comes English stick. Cognates include German Distel and Icelandic þistill. (Wiktionary)
- Middle English, from Old English thistel. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“It's the flower of France, you know – just as the thistle is the – ”
“I have made the Scotch Thistle Lace Stole in "thistle-y" colors and had it with me when we toured Scotland in 07.”
“The thistle is armed with sharp prickles; the mallow is soft and woolly.”
“but as those silly children are going to dress, I suppose I had better put on the gown which I call my thistle gown.”
“Before we parted, they gave me Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer’s “Scotch Thistle Lace Stole” pattern, some incredibly beautiful Fiesta Ballerina yarn in thistle-y colours to knit it in and enough Bristol Yarn Gallery “Buckingham” in a sort of camel-by-moonlight shade, to knit it again.”
“That's a sow thistle, which is halfway between a chicory and lettuce—it can be eaten raw or as greens, which I actually prefer.”
“In French iconography, the thistle is the symbol of the pain of Christ and of the Virgin.”
“Andy, remember, one of the herbs you put me on was milk thistle, which is very soothing and protective.”
“For instance, in my particular case, I use milk thistle, which is silymarin, because it sort of nurtures the hepatic cells.”
CNN Transcript - Larry King Live: Andrew Weil Discusses `Eating Well' - April 5, 2000
“Then the thistle is your flower," said clever Ileane.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘thistle’.
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Interesting words
A list of words that are odd or words that I have looked up.
concupiscence, brize, scree, scoria, forestaff, spanaemia, valetudinarianism, distasture, pyrethrum, laudanum, gentian, bicameral and 11184 more...
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Uncommon Colours
azure, myrtle, periwinkle, viridian, jade, emerald, lime, chartreuse, asparagus, celadon, harlequin, olive and 147 more...
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RELI - Genesis
Protagonists and relevant words in the Book of Creation (Source: King James Bible)
wrath, leaf, belly, prey, death, break, six, nod, dim, end, inn, judge and 1286 more...
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Crayon Colors
This is a continuing list of Crayon Colors past and present. As I find new ones added to the "box", I will add them here as well!
black, blue, brown, apricot, bittersweet, blue green, blue violet, brick red, burnt sienna, carnation pink, cornflower, flesh and 134 more...
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Colors/Patterns/Prints/Textures
fritillary, chartreuse, tortoise-shell, brindle, burnt orange, cerulean, amaranth, sandy, amber, mold, fungus, kiwi and 65 more...
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The Decemberists for polite everyday ...
opal, dolor, lithe, infanta, vagabond, courtesan, vestry, skein, dram, magenta, camisole, charlemagne and 8 more...
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Awesome Names for Your Heavy Metal Band
onslaught, gamecock, chthonic, hoarfrost, kernicterus, keelhaul, simulacrum, clavicle, interregnum, catafalque, gravamen, blunderbuss and 47 more...
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♥
ambrosia, inamorata, gossamer, lily-white, hummingbird, roucoulement, poppy, daisy, calypso, lunula, lamb, dove and 1526 more...
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and ...
Words that, as I see it, have some fond connection to the Alice stories through their creation or particular use by Lewis Carroll. I mean to tie them all together with contexty comments!
alice, daisy-chain, white rabbit, waistcoat-pocket, rabbit-hole, marmalade, antipathy, antipode, curtsey, dinah, tea-time, rat-hole and 232 more...
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Mr. Prolagus is surprised
Words - or different usages of words I already knew - that I am learning thanks to Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery.
See also ofravens' with thanks to Anne Shirley.alder, decorum, ferret, dint, wont, gauntlet, turnip, sorrel, deft, embower, scant, peck and 92 more...
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euphonic logorrhea
cephalopodous, plumulaceous, oblomovism, etiolation, pavonine, somnolent, logorrhea, fulguration, gossamer, prestidigitation, daffodil, inchoate and 174 more...
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The Sog Collection
My big word list.
chaos, flaccid, empirical, flotsam, cacophony, grumble, assuage, awe, romance, mortality, coalesce, fortuitous and 3282 more...
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billfence's Words
quotidian, flux, sawbuck, horsefeathers, chalcedony, harp, no, fox, tennis, badminton, flue, charm and 186 more...
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Flora
fenugreek, verbena, saxifrage, arbutus, calendula, nasturtium, lobelia, hellebore, rhododendron, philodendron, bellflower, heuchera and 449 more...
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the gardener and apothecary's
bryony, chamomile, frond, sweet bay, laurel, monkshood, henbane, hemlock, parsley, rosemary, thyme, lady's mantle and 140 more...
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Crayola Crayon Colors Circa 1998
almond, antique brass, apricot, aquamarine, asparagus, atomic tangerine, banana mania, beaver, bittersweet, black, blizzard blue, blue and 108 more...
Tweets
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