nettle
Pronunciation Noun
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Pronunciation Noun
nettle (plural nettles)
- Any plant whose foliage is covered with stinging, mildly poisonous hairs, causing an instant rash.
- Especially, most species of herb genus Urtica, the stinging nettles:
- Most, but not all, subspecies of Urtica dioica (common nettle),
- Urtica incisa (Australian nettle);
- Wood nettle (Laportea canadensis);
- bull nettles and spurge nettles of genus Cnidoscolus:
- Cnidoscolus stimulosus, bull nettle, spurge nettle,
- Cnidoscolus texanus, Texas bull nettle,
- Cnidoscolus urens, bull nettle,
- Nettle trees or tree nettles:
- Various species of the genus Dendrocnide:
- Urera baccifera (scratchbush),
- Urtica ferox (tree nettle);
- rock nettle (Eucnide);
- small-leaved nettle (Dendrocnide photinophylla).
- Especially, most species of herb genus Urtica, the stinging nettles:
- Certain plants that have spines or prickles:
- ball nettle (Solanum carolinense);
- Solanum elaeagnifolium, bull nettle, silver-leaf nettle, white horse-nettle;
- Solanum dimidiatum, western horse-nettle, robust horse-nettle;
- Solanum rostratum, horse-nettle;
- Celtis (hackberry).
- Certain non-stinging plants, mostly in the family Lamiaceae, that resemble the species of Urtica:
- dead nettle, dumb nettle (Lamium), particularly Lamium album, white nettle;
- false nettle (Boehmeria, family Urticaceae);
- flame nettle or painted nettle (Coleus);
- hedge nettle (Stachys);
- hemp nettle (Galeopsis);
- horse nettle Agastache urticifolia,
- nilgiri nettle, Himalayan giant nettle (Girardinia diversifolia, family Urticaceae).
- Loosely, anything which causes a similarly stinging rash, such as a jellyfish or sea nettle.
- French: ortie
- German: Nessel, Brennnessel
- Italian: ortica
- Portuguese: urtiga, ortiga
- Russian: крапи́ва
- Spanish: ortiga
nettle (nettles, present participle nettling; past and past participle nettled)
- (transitive) Of the nettle plant and similar physical causes, to sting, causing a rash in someone.
- The children were badly nettled after playing in the field.
- c. 1597, William Shakespeare, Henry IV, Part 1, Act I, Scene 3,
- […] I am whipp’d and scourged with rods,
- Nettled and stung with pismires, when I hear
- Of this vile politician, Bolingbroke.
- (transitive, figuratively) To pique, irritate, vex or provoke.
- 1679, Aphra Behn, The Feign'd Curtizans, London: Jacob Tonson, Act V, Scene 1, p. ,
- His Mistress: whose Mistress, what Mistress; s’life how that little word has nettled me!
- 1741, Samuel Richardson, Pamela; or, Virtue Rewarded, London: C. Rivington & J. Osborn, 2nd edition, Volume I, Letter 31, p. 212,
- I saw Mr. Williams was a little nettled at my Impatience […]
- 1985, United States. Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Daily Report: People's Republic of China (issues 180-189, page 42)
- Liu, whose political writings had nettled the Taiwanese authorities, was assassinated on October 15, last year, in Daly City […]
- 1679, Aphra Behn, The Feign'd Curtizans, London: Jacob Tonson, Act V, Scene 1, p. ,
This text is extracted from the Wiktionary and it is available under the CC BY-SA 3.0 license | Terms and conditions | Privacy policy 0.004