NEEDLE


Meaning of NEEDLE in English

/ ˈniːdl; NAmE / noun , verb

■ noun

[ C ]

FOR SEWING

1.

a small thin piece of steel that you use for sewing, with a point at one end and a hole for the thread at the other :

a needle and thread

the eye (= hole) of a needle

—picture at knitting

—see also pins and needles

FOR KNITTING

2.

a long thin piece of plastic or metal with a point at one end that you use for knitting. You usually use two together :

knitting needles

FOR DRUGS

3.

a very thin, pointed piece of steel used on the end of a syringe for putting a drug into sb's body, or for taking blood out of it :

a hypodermic needle

—picture at injection

ON INSTRUMENT

4.

a thin piece of metal on a scientific instrument that moves to point to the correct measurement or direction :

The compass needle was pointing north.

ON PINE TREE

5.

[ usually pl. ] the thin, hard, pointed leaf of a pine tree

—picture at tree

ON RECORD PLAYER

6.

the very small pointed piece of metal that touches a record that is being played in order to produce the sound

SYN stylus

IDIOMS

- a needle in a haystack

■ verb

[ vn ] ( informal ) to deliberately annoy sb, especially by criticizing them continuously

SYN antagonize :

Don't let her needle you.

••

WORD ORIGIN

Old English nǣdl , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch naald and German Nadel , from an Indo-European root shared by Latin nere to spin and Greek nēma thread.

Oxford Advanced Learner's English Dictionary.      Оксфордский английский словарь для изучающик язык на продвинутом уровне.