Adjacent Words

Needle definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

NEEDLE, n. [G. something sharp or pointed. It may be allied to nettle.]
1. A small instrument of steel pointed at one end, with an eye at the other to receive a thread; used in sewing and embroidery. Needles are also used by surgeons in sewing up wounds.
2. A small pointed piece of steel used in the mariners compass, which by its magnetic quality is attracted and directed to the pole, and thus enables navigators to steer their ships the course intended.
3. Any crystalized substance in the form of a needle.
Dipping needle, a magnetic needle that dips or inclines downwards.
NEEDLE, v.t. To form crystals in the shape of a needle.
NEEDLE, v.i. To shoot in crystalization into the form of needles; as needled prisms.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: the leaf of a conifer [syn: acerate leaf, needle]
2: a slender pointer for indicating the reading on the scale of a measuring instrument
3: a sharp pointed implement (usually steel)
4: a stylus that formerly made sound by following a groove in a phonograph record [syn: phonograph needle, needle] v
1: goad or provoke,as by constant criticism; "He needled her with his sarcastic remarks" [syn: needle, goad]
2: prick with a needle

Merriam Webster's

I. noun Etymology: Middle English nedle, from Old English n?dl; akin to Old High German n?dala needle, n?jan to sew, Latin n?re to spin, Greek n?n Date: before 12th century 1. a. a small slender usually steel instrument that has an eye for thread or surgical sutures at one end and that is used for sewing b. any of various devices for carrying thread and making stitches (as in crocheting or knitting) c. (1) a slender hollow instrument for introducing material into or removing material from the body (as by insertion under the skin) (2) any of various slender hollow devices used to introduce matter (as air) into or remove it from an object (as a ball) 2. a. a slender bar of magnetized steel that when allowed to turn freely (as in a compass) indicates the direction of a magnetic field (as of the earth) b. a slender usually sharp-pointed indicator on a dial 3. a. a slender pointed object resembling a needle: as (1) a pointed crystal (2) a sharp rock (3) obelisk b. a needle-shaped leaf (as of a conifer) c. a slender rod (as of jewel or steel) with a rounded tip used in a phonograph to transmit vibrations from a record ; stylus d. a slender pointed rod controlling a fine inlet or outlet (as in a valve) 4. a teasing or gibing remark • needlelike adjective II. verb (needled; needling) Date: circa 1715 transitive verb 1. to sew or pierce with or as if with a needle 2. a. tease, torment b. to incite to action by repeated gibes <needled the boy into a fight> intransitive verb sew, embroider • needler noun

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & v. --n. 1 a a very thin small piece of smooth steel etc. pointed at one end and with a slit (eye) for thread at the other, used in sewing. b a larger plastic, wooden, etc. slender stick without an eye, used in knitting. c a slender hooked stick used in crochet. 2 a pointer on a dial (see magnetic needle). 3 any of several small thin pointed instruments, esp.: a a surgical instrument for stitching. b the end of a hypodermic syringe. c = STYLUS. d an etching tool. e a steel pin exploding the cartridge of a breech-loading gun. 4 a an obelisk (Cleopatra's Needle). b a pointed rock or peak. 5 the leaf of a fir or pine tree. 6 a beam used as a temporary support during underpinning. 7 Brit. sl. a fit of bad temper or nervousness (got the needle while waiting). --v.tr. 1 colloq. incite or irritate; provoke (the silence needled him). 2 sew, pierce, or operate on with a needle. Phrases and idioms: needle game (or match etc.) Brit. a contest that is very close or arouses personal grudges. needle in a haystack something almost impossible to find because it is concealed by so many other things etc. needle-lace lace made with needles not bobbins. needle-point 1 a very sharp point. 2 = needle-lace. 3 = GROS or petit point. needle's eye (or eye of a needle) the least possible aperture, esp. with ref. to Matt.
19:24. needle time an agreed maximum allowance of time for broadcasting music from records. needle valve a valve closed by a thin tapering part. Etymology: OE nædl f. Gmc

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Declination Dec`li*na"tion, n. [L. declinatio a bending aside, an avoiding: cf. F. d['e]clination a decadence. See Declension.] 1. The act or state of bending downward; inclination; as, declination of the head. 2. The act or state of falling off or declining from excellence or perfection; deterioration; decay; decline. ``The declination of monarchy.'' --Bacon. Summer . . . is not looked on as a time Of declination or decay. --Waller. 3. The act of deviating or turning aside; oblique motion; obliquity; withdrawal. The declination of atoms in their descent. --Bentley. Every declination and violation of the rules. --South. 4. The act or state of declining or refusing; withdrawal; refusal; averseness. The queen's declination from marriage. --Stow. 5. (Astron.) The angular distance of any object from the celestial equator, either northward or southward. 6. (Dialing) The arc of the horizon, contained between the vertical plane and the prime vertical circle, if reckoned from the east or west, or between the meridian and the plane, reckoned from the north or south. 7. (Gram.) The act of inflecting a word; declension. See Decline, v. t., 4. Angle of declination, the angle made by a descending line, or plane, with a horizontal plane. Circle of declination, a circle parallel to the celestial equator. Declination compass (Physics), a compass arranged for finding the declination of the magnetic needle. Declination of the compass or needle, the horizontal angle which the magnetic needle makes with the true north-and-south line.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Needle Nee"dle, n. [OE. nedle, AS. n?dl; akin to D. neald, OS. n[=a]dla, G. nadel, OHG. n[=a]dal, n[=a]dala, Icel. n[=a]l, Sw. n[*a]l, Dan. naal, and also to G. n["a]hen to sew, OHG. n[=a]jan, L. nere to spin, Gr. ?, and perh. to E. snare: cf. Gael. & Ir. snathad needle, Gael. snath thread, G. schnur string, cord.] 1. A small instrument of steel, sharply pointed at one end, with an eye to receive a thread, -- used in sewing. --Chaucer. Note: In some needles(as for sewing machines) the eye is at the pointed end, but in ordinary needles it is at the blunt end. 2. See Magnetic needle, under Magnetic. 3. A slender rod or wire used in knitting; a knitting needle; also, a hooked instrument which carries the thread or twine, and by means of which knots or loops are formed in the process of netting, knitting, or crocheting. 4. (Bot.) One of the needle-shaped secondary leaves of pine trees. See Pinus. 5. Any slender, pointed object, like a needle, as a pointed crystal, a sharp pinnacle of rock, an obelisk, etc. Dipping needle. See under Dipping. Needle bar, the reciprocating bar to which the needle of a sewing machine is attached. Needle beam (Arch.), to shoring, the horizontal cross timber which goes through the wall or a pier, and upon which the weight of the wall rests, when a building is shored up to allow of alterations in the lower part. Needle furze (Bot.), a prickly leguminous plant of Western Europe; the petty whin (Genista Anglica). Needle gun, a firearm loaded at the breech with a cartridge carrying its own fulminate, which is exploded by driving a slender needle, or pin, into it. Needle loom (Weaving), a loom in which the weft thread is carried through the shed by a long eye-pointed needle instead of by a shuttle. Needle ore (Min.), acicular bismuth; a sulphide of bismuth, lead, and copper occuring in acicular crystals; -- called also aikinite. Needle shell (Zo["o]l.), a sea urchin. Needle spar (Min.), aragonite. Needle telegraph, a telegraph in which the signals are given by the deflections of a magnetic needle to the right or to the left of a certain position. Sea needle (Zo["o]l.), the garfish.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Needle Nee"dle, v. i. To form needles; to crystallize in the form of needles.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Needle Nee"dle, v. t. To form in the shape of a needle; as, to needle crystals.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(needles, needling, needled) 1. A needle is a small, very thin piece of polished metal which is used for sewing. It has a sharp point at one end and a hole in the other for a thread to go through. N-COUNT 2. Knitting needles are thin sticks that are used for knitting. They are usually made of plastic or metal and have a point at one end. N-COUNT: usu supp N 3. A needle is a thin hollow metal rod with a sharp point, which is part of a medical instrument called a syringe. It is used to put a drug into someone's body, or to take blood out. N-COUNT 4. A needle is a thin metal rod with a point which is put into a patient's body during acupuncture. N-COUNT 5. On an instrument which measures something such as speed or weight, the needle is the long strip of metal or plastic on the dial that moves backwards and forwards, showing the measurement. She kept looking at the dial on the boiler. The needle had reached 250 degrees. N-COUNT 6. The needles of a fir or pine tree are its thin, hard, pointed leaves. The carpet of pine needles was soft underfoot. N-COUNT: usu pl 7. If someone needles you, they annoy you continually, especially by criticizing you. Blake could see he had needled Jerrold, which might be unwise. VERB: V n 8. like looking for a needle in a haystack: see haystack see also pins and needles

Easton's Bible Dictionary

used only in the proverb, "to pass through a needle's eye" (Matt. 19:24; Mark 10:25; Luke 18:25). Some interpret the expression as referring to the side gate, close to the principal gate, usually called the "eye of a needle" in the East; but it is rather to be taken literally. The Hebrew females were skilled in the use of the needle (Ex. 28:39; 26:36; Judg. 5:30).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

ne'-d'-l (rhaphis): The word "needle" occurs only 3 times, namely, in the reference to Christ's use of the proverb: "It is easier for a camel to go through a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God" (Mt 19:24; Mr 10:25; Lu 18:25). This saying ought to be accepted in the same sense as Mt 23:24, "Ye blind guides, that strain out the gnat, and swallow the camel!" Christ used them to illustrate absurdities. A rabbinical parallel is cited, "an elephant through a needle's eye." Some writers have attempted to show that rhaphis referred to a small gate of a walled oriental city. No evidence of such a use of the word exists in the terms applied today in Biblical lands to this opening. "Rich man" here has the connotation of a man bound up in his riches. If a man continues to trust in his earthly possessions to save him, it would be absurd for him to expect to share in the spiritual kingdom where dependence upon the King is a first requisite.

The fact that needles are not mentioned elsewhere in the Bible should not be taken to indicate that this instrument was not used. Specimens of bone and metal needles of ancient origin show that they were common household objects.

See CAMEL.

James A. Patch

Moby Thesaurus

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