- 1a 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 see pins and needles
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for knitting - 2a 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
- 3a very thin, pointed piece of steel used on the end of a syringe for putting a drug into someone's body, or for taking blood out of it a hypodermic needle on instrument
- 4a 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 plural] the thin, hard, pointed leaf of a pine tree on record player
- 6the very small pointed piece of metal that touches a record that is being played in order to produce the sound synonym stylus Idioms
for sewing
a thing that is almost impossible to find Searching for one man in this city is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
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