needleleft to right: sailmaking, sewing machine, and tapestry needlesbottom right: spring needlenee·dle (n?d?l)n.1. a. A slender, pointed implement used for sewing or surgical suturing, made usually of polished steel and having an eye at one end through which a length of thread is passed and held.b. Any of various similar implements, such as a fine sharp-pointed instrument used in acupuncture or a pointed shaft used in knitting, crocheting, or lace making.c. A sharp-pointed instrument used in engraving.2. A slender piece of jewel or steel used to transmit vibrations from the grooves of a phonograph record.3. a. A slender pointer or indicator on a dial, scale, or similar part of a mechanical device.b. A magnetic needle.4. a. A hypodermic needle.b. Informal A hypodermic injection; a shot.5. Chiefly Upper Northern US See dragonfly.6. A narrow stiff leaf, as of a pine or fir.7. A fine, sharp projection, as a spine of a sea urchin or a crystal.8. a. A tall narrow rock formation.b. An obelisk.9. Informal A goading, provoking, or teasing remark or act.v. nee·dled, nee·dling, nee·dles v.tr.1. To prick, pierce, or stitch with a needle.2. Informal To goad, provoke, or tease.v.intr. To sew or do similar work with a needle.[Middle English nedle, from Old English n?dl; see (s)n?- in Indo-European roots.]nee?dler n.American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.needle (?ni?d?l) n1. (Knitting & Sewing) a pointed slender piece of metal, usually steel, with a hole or eye in it through which thread is passed for sewing2. (Knitting & Sewing) a somewhat larger rod with a point at one or each end, used in knitting3. (Knitting & Sewing) a similar instrument with a hook at one end for crocheting4. (Electronics) a. another name for stylus3b. a small thin pointed device, esp one made of stainless steel, used to transmit the vibrations from a gramophone record to the pick-up5. (Medicine) med a. the long hollow pointed part of a hypodermic syringe, which is inserted into the bodyb. an informal name for hypodermic syringe6. (Surgery) surgery a pointed steel instrument, often curved, for suturing, puncturing, or ligating7. (Botany) a long narrow stiff leaf, esp of a conifer, in which water loss is greatly reduced: pine needles. 8. (Zoology) any slender sharp spine, such as the spine of a sea urchin9. (General Physics) any slender pointer for indicating the reading on the scale of a measuring instrument10. (General Physics) short for magnetic needle11. (Chemistry) a crystal resembling a needle in shape12. (Art Terms) a sharp pointed metal instrument used in engraving and etching13. anything long and pointed, such as an obelisk: a needle of light. 14. (Building) a short horizontal beam passed through a wall and supported on vertical posts to take the load of the upper part of the wall15. informal a. anger or intense rivalry, esp in a sporting encounterb. (as modifier): a needle match. 16. get the needle have the needle informal Brit to feel dislike, distaste, nervousness, or annoyance (for): she got the needle after he had refused her invitation. vb17. (tr) informal to goad or provoke, as by constant criticism18. (Knitting & Sewing) (tr) to sew, embroider, or prick (fabric) with a needle19. (Brewing) (tr) US to increase the alcoholic strength of (beer or other beverages)20. (Chemistry) (intr) (of a substance) to form needle-shaped crystals[Old English n?dl; related to Gothic n?thla, German Nadel]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014nee?dle (?nid l) n., v. -dled, -dling. n. 1. a small, slender, rodlike instrument, usu. of polished steel, with a sharp point at one end and an eye or hole for thread at the other, for passing thread through cloth to make stitches in sewing. 2. any of various related, usu. considerably larger, implements for making stitches, as in knitting or crocheting. Compare crochet (def. 1), knitting needle. 3. Med. a. a slender, pointed, steel instrument used in sewing or piercing tissues, as in suturing. b. a hypodermic needle. 4. an injection of a drug or medicine; shot. 5. any of various objects resembling or suggesting a needle. 6. the tapered stylus at the end of a phonographic tonearm, used to transmit vibrations from a record groove to a transducer for conversion to audible signals. 7. a pointed instrument, or stylus, used in engraving, etching, or the like. 8. Bot. a needle-shaped leaf, as of a pine. 9. Zool. a slender, sharp spicule. 10. Chem., Mineral. a needlelike crystal. 11. a sharp-pointed mass or pinnacle of rock. 12. an obelisk or a tapering, four-sided shaft of stone. 13. the needle, Informal. teasing or harassing remarks. v.t. 14. to sew or pierce with or as if with a needle. 15. Informal. a. to prod or goad (someone) to a specified action: We needled her into going with us. b. to tease. v.i. 16. to form needles in crystallization. 17. to work with a needle. [before 900; Middle English nedle, Old English n?dl, c. Old High German n?dala (German Nadel), Old Norse n?l, Gothic nethla; akin to German nähen to sew, Latin n?re to spin] nee?dler, n. Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.nee·dle (n?d?l) A narrow, stiff leaf, as of firs, pines, and other conifers. The reduced surface area of needles minimizes water loss and allows needle-bearing plants to live in dry climates. See more at leaf, See hypodermic needle.The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.needlegab – In mechanics, a hook or a notch in a rod or lever that then engages with a pin or needle.in the groove – An allusion to the reproduction of music by a needle on a gramophone record.needle – Has the same Indo-European base as Latin nere, “to spin,” and Greek nema, “thread.”feed dog – The part of a sewing machine that feeds the material under the needle.Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.needlePast participle: needledGerund: needlingImperativePresentPreteritePresent ContinuousPresent PerfectPast ContinuousPast PerfectFutureFuture PerfectFuture ContinuousPresent Perfect ContinuousFuture Perfect ContinuousPast Perfect ContinuousConditionalPast ConditionalImperativeneedleneedlePresentI needleyou needlehe/she/it needleswe needleyou needlethey needlePreteriteI needledyou needledhe/she/it needledwe needledyou needledthey needledPresent ContinuousI am needlingyou are needlinghe/she/it is needlingwe are needlingyou are needlingthey are needlingPresent PerfectI have needledyou have needledhe/she/it has needledwe have needledyou have needledthey have needledPast ContinuousI was needlingyou were needlinghe/she/it was needlingwe were needlingyou were needlingthey were needlingPast PerfectI had needledyou had needledhe/she/it had needledwe had needledyou had needledthey had needledFutureI will needleyou will needlehe/she/it will needlewe will needleyou will needlethey will needleFuture PerfectI will have needledyou will have needledhe/she/it will have needledwe will have needledyou will have needledthey will have needledFuture ContinuousI will be needlingyou will be needlinghe/she/it will be needlingwe will be needlingyou will be needlingthey will be needlingPresent Perfect ContinuousI have been needlingyou have been needlinghe/she/it has been needlingwe have been needlingyou have been needlingthey have been needlingFuture Perfect ContinuousI will have been needlingyou will have been needlinghe/she/it will have been needlingwe will have been needlingyou will have been needlingthey will have been needlingPast Perfect ContinuousI had been needlingyou had been needlinghe/she/it had been needlingwe had been needlingyou had been needlingthey had been needlingConditionalI would needleyou would needlehe/she/it would needlewe would needleyou would needlethey would needlePast ConditionalI would have needledyou would have needledhe/she/it would have needledwe would have needledyou would have needledthey would have needledCollins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011