needle
124
2.8
- noun
- /ˈniːdəl/
- I played that album until the needle broke on my record player.
- pine needles
- compass needle
- leaves and needles
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Watch on YouTubeAnd that's because these are needles, but they're also leaves.
- And that's because these are needles, but they're also leaves.
- And they may have thorns rather than needles, but they're much more durable.
- So, so the north side of the needle points north, and that's how you know it's north.
- And it's just got, you know, just very, it's needle nose scissors basically.
- And you can see that the needles start to to move.
- Monday night, a needle moon across the darkness of noon.
Examples
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I made some pine needles tea with freshly gathered foliage from the tree.
-
I made some pine needle tea.
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But these have the deep green needles that are so pretty.
-
When you look up through the leaves or needles, can you still see the sky?
Academic text (2008) -
The phonograph had stopped playing, and the needle scraped at the end of the record.
Fiction book (1990) -
Conjuring a harpoon, the word 'needle' also refers to the directional pointer on a compass.
Academic text (1993) -
The pine tree's needles are long and slender, providing a unique texture to the landscape.
-
When examining the gas gauge, I noticed the needle was pointing to 'Full'.
Synonyms
12
3.7
A thin needle that shows position or direction on a dial
8
2.0
A thin pointed stick used to make cloth by looping yarn
2
1.6
A thin metal tool with a point and a hole for thread used to push thread through cloth
1
8.4
A small pointed piece that touches a record's groove to make sound
1
3.0
A long needle with a large eye that you use to thread thick thread for decorative sewing
A small pointed needle that reads music from a vinyl record
A thin leaf shaped like a needle on pine trees
Idioms
6
7.6
To pass something carefully through a very small gap or to do a very precise and difficult action
- Informal
1
6.7
To try to find something that is hidden among many things
Compounds
- Specialized
9
3.9
A thin hollow tube with a sharp point that doctors use to give medicine or take blood through the skin
2
1.6
A thin metal tool with a point and a hole for thread used to push thread through cloth
- Specialized
2
3.5
A medical procedure that uses a hollow needle to take a small piece of body tissue for testing
1
3.0
A long needle with a large eye that you use to thread thick thread for decorative sewing
- Archaic
1
9.6
A slender insect with bright shiny wings that eats mosquitoes and small insects
1
9.3
A plant like a spiky bush with long stiff leaves that have thin threadlike edges
- Specialized
1
6.2
A small part with thin metal rollers that helps a shaft turn smoothly
- Specialized
1
7.9
A disease of pine and spruce trees that makes their needles turn brown and fall early
1
9.9
A climbing plant with many small creamy white flowers that grows over other plants
A slender flying insect with long body and clear wings often found near water
A plant that grows in dry places with long stiff leaves that have thin threads along the edges
- Specialized
A metal rod in a sewing machine that holds and moves the needle up and down
- Australian
A shrub from eastern Australia with leaves like needles and white flowers
- Australian
A shrub with sharp needle-shaped leaves and white flowers from eastern Australia
- Jargon
A moment when a song starts in a film or show that makes the scene more powerful
- Australian
A large bush with sharp pointed leaves and creamy white flowers from central and eastern Australia
How Thin
Surface Forms
Etymology
The word needle comes from the old English nædl, meaning a thin sharp point, so people used the same name for any slim pointed thing. That's why a pine tree leaf or the tiny tip on a record player is also called a 'needle' — they are pointed and thin like a sewing needle.