Wiktionary

thorn

See also: Thorn and þorn

English

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thorns of a plant (sense 1)
 
upper- and lower-case versions of the thorn character (sense 4)

Etymology

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From Middle English thorn, þorn, from Old English þorn, from Proto-West Germanic *þorn, from Proto-Germanic *þurnaz, 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 taňi, tai (“thorn”), Sanskrit तृण (tṛ́ṇa, “grass”).

Pronunciation

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Noun

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thorn (plural thorns)

  1. (botany) A sharp protective spine of a plant.
  2. Any shrub or small tree that bears thorns, especially a hawthorn.
    the white thorn
    the cockspur thorn
  3. (figurative) That which pricks or annoys; anything troublesome.
  4. 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).
    • 1985, Robert Burchfield, The English Language, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 175:
      In Old English manuscripts thorn and eth did not have different phonetic values but were used positionally[.]
    • See also Etymology of ye (definite article).

Derived terms

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Translations

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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

Verb

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thorn (third-person singular simple present thorns, present participle thorning, simple past and past participle thorned)

  1. 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

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See also

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Further reading

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Anagrams

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Middle English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Inherited from Old English þorn, from Proto-West Germanic *þorn, from Proto-Germanic *þurnaz, from Proto-Indo-European *tr̥nós.

Pronunciation

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  • IPA(key): /θɔrn/, /θoːrn/, /θrɔn/

Noun

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thorn (plural thornes)

  1. A thorn (spine on a plant with a sharp point)
  2. Thorn or eth (the letter þ and/or ð)
  3. A plant having thorns, especially the hawthorn or rosebush.
  4. (rare) Thorns pulled from the ground for burning.
  5. (rare) A dish incorporating hawthorn.

Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • English: thorn
  • Scots: thorn; torn (Shetland)
  • Yola: thoornes, thorns, thurns

References

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Old Saxon

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Etymology

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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

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Noun

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thorn m

  1. thorn; thorny bush

Declension

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Declension of thorn (masculine a-stem)
singular plural
nominative thorn thornos
accusative thorn thornos
genitive thornes thornō
dative thorne thornum
instrumental — —


Descendants

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