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Glite Dictionary
thornless

thornless

1 3.2
A plant that has no thorns on its stems or branches
  • adjective
  • /ˈθɔrn.ləs/
translation icon : sin espinas
  • There's a couple of thornless Hawthorns.
  • thornless blackberry

Examples

  • Dang, how fun is that thornless dwarf?

  • With thornless varieties available, picking blackberries has become much more enjoyable and less painful.

  • The thornless blackberries are ready for release, but he is still struggling to find names for them.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Also, thornless raspberries are looking quite appealing right now at this point.

  • The industry has given him high praise for five thornless blackberries soon to be released.

    Academic text (2003)

  • Thornless Blackberries—a USDA First

    Academic text (1994)

  • For instance, he may want to create a new blackberry cultivar that produces large yields and is thornless—something very important to growers.

    Academic text (2003)

  • "USDA blackberry breeders introduced the first truly genetic thornless blackberries—Thornfree and Smooth-stem—to the eastern United States in 1966," Galletta says.

    Academic text (1994)

  • The garden is filled with thornless plants, making it easy for children to play safely among them.

  • I prefer to grow thornless roses in my backyard because they are much easier to handle.

Synonyms

unarmed
vsthornless
  • Specialized
2 4.1

A living thing without stings or thorns

is used only for plant stems and not for animals
spineless
vsthornless
1 4.8

Having no sharp spines or thorns on the body

applies only to plant stems rather than animals

Antonyms

thorny
6 4.2

Covered with sharp points like those on rose bushes

How Thorny

spiny
3 3.9
thorny
6 4.2
thorned
4.2
prickly
14 3.3
thornless
1 3.2

Surface Forms

thornless positive

Morphology

thornless = thorn (transparent) = thorn + less

The meaning is directly derived from 'thorn' + '-less' = 'without thorns', which is immediately clear to learners.

Etymology

Thornless is made of thorn and -less: thorn means a 'sharp point' on a plant and -less means 'without', just like in harmless. So a thornless plant is 'without' sharp points, which makes it safer to touch.