ticklish

[ tik-lish ]
/ ˈtɪk lɪʃ /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR ticklish ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

sensitive to tickling.
requiring careful or delicate handling or action; difficult or risky; dicey: a ticklish situation.
extremely sensitive; touchy: He is ticklish about being interrupted.
unstable or easily upset, as a boat; unsteady.

Origin of ticklish

First recorded in 1575–85; tickle + -ish1

OTHER WORDS FROM ticklish

tick·lish·ly, adverb tick·lish·ness, noun

Words nearby ticklish

tickle the ivories, tickled pink, tickler, tickler coil, tickler file, ticklish, tickly, ticknor, tickseed, ticktack, ticktock

Words related to ticklish

awkward, touchy, precarious, thorny, volatile, delicate, capricious, chancy, changeable, critical, dangerous, fickle, inconstant, mercurial, nice, risky, rocky, sensitive, temperamental, trying

Example sentences from the Web for ticklish

British Dictionary definitions for ticklish

ticklish
/ (ˈtɪklɪʃ) /

adjective

susceptible and sensitive to being tickled
delicate or difficult a ticklish situation
easily upset or offended

Derived forms of ticklish

ticklishly, adverb ticklishness, noun