Illustration of thistle
plural thistles
1
: any of various composite (see composite entry 1 sense 1b) flowering plants (especially genera Carduus, Cirsium, and Onopordum) that have prickles on their leaves and sometimes on their stems and often have showy heads of tubular, usually purple flowers
also
: any of various other prickly plants
2
often thistle seed plural thistle seeds
: the small black seed of a tropical African herbaceous plant (Guizotia abyssinica) used especially as a source of oil and for bird feed
Examples of thistle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Points for going in a brave direction color-wise — and for the lovely little purple thistle detail on the back.
—
Ashley Fetters Maloy, Washington Post, 16 June 2026
Perennial weeds include dandelions, burdock, thistle and plantains while Queen Anne’s lace and garlic mustard are some biennial ones.
—Dawn Pettinelli, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2026
In addition to sunflowers, goldfinches also love purple cone flowers, thistles, zinnias, Hooker’s evening primrose, milkweed and some weeds, including dandelions and pineapple weed.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 1 June 2026
Finches, for example, favor thistle seed.
—Rita Pelczar, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for thistle
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Ashley Fetters Maloy, Washington Post, 16 June 2026
Perennial weeds include dandelions, burdock, thistle and plantains while Queen Anne’s lace and garlic mustard are some biennial ones.
—Dawn Pettinelli, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2026
In addition to sunflowers, goldfinches also love purple cone flowers, thistles, zinnias, Hooker’s evening primrose, milkweed and some weeds, including dandelions and pineapple weed.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 1 June 2026
Finches, for example, favor thistle seed.
—Rita Pelczar, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for thistle
Cite this Entry
“Thistle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/thistle. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
thistle
noun
this·tle
ˈthis-əl 
: any of various prickly plants related to the daisies and having often showy heads of mostly tubular flowers
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