as in irritable
having or showing a habitually bad temper
an ill-tempered cat will scratch with little provocation
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Recent Examples of ill-tempered
On balance, however, Billy Wagner, an imposing 6-foot-6 and 275 pounds, came off as brash and blustery, foul-mouthed and ill-tempered in witness testimony.
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Patricia Gallagher Newberry, The Enquirer, 12 Dec. 2024
Lemon's interview with Musk delves into numerous topics, ranging from the entrepreneur's views on race to X's loss of advertisers over his antisemitic comments, with Musk growing increasingly ill-tempered with Lemon over the course of the discussion.
—Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 18 Mar. 2024
If the person in charge is ill-tempered, thrives on conflict, and easily persuaded, problems are made worse.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 27 May 2023
Patricia Gallagher Newberry, The Enquirer, 12 Dec. 2024
Lemon's interview with Musk delves into numerous topics, ranging from the entrepreneur's views on race to X's loss of advertisers over his antisemitic comments, with Musk growing increasingly ill-tempered with Lemon over the course of the discussion.
—Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 18 Mar. 2024
If the person in charge is ill-tempered, thrives on conflict, and easily persuaded, problems are made worse.
—Matthew Continetti, National Review, 27 May 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill-tempered
Adjective
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Coupled with erratic blood sugar levels – often caused by diets high in refined sugars and low in nutrients – these energy dips and spikes can leave you feeling irritable and drained.Lina Begdache, The Conversation, 7 Jan. 2025
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This can contribute to symptoms such as fatigue, muscle aches, and irritable mood.Rosanna Sutherby, PharmD, Verywell Health, 3 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Waves of immigration have sparked an angry ethno-nationalism that advantages ideological extremes.Charles A. Kupchan, The Atlantic, 10 Jan. 2025
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Many people were really unhappy, depressed and angry, frustrated.Gabrielle Emanuel, NPR, 9 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Carrey portrays Ebenezer Scrooge, a cantankerous, greedy old man who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his ways.Keith Langston, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024
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The endearing homecoming introduces new characters including Moni (Hualalai Chung), a passionate island bard; Loto (Rose Matafeo), a quirky shipwright; Kele (David Fane), a cantankerous farmer; and Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), Moana’s tenacious younger sister.Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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The offensive line, in Monken’s estimation, is the most talented and possibly most ornery unit he’s had at West Point, all the way down to wrestling each other to settle arguments about who’s tougher.Brian Hamilton, The Athletic, 21 Nov. 2024
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They’re led by John Dutton III, an ornery character who nevertheless carries the kind of gravitas that only a veteran movie star like Kevin Costner can bring.Noel Murray, Vulture, 18 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Sometimes that means confronting disagreeable people.David Plazas, The Tennessean, 24 Apr. 2024
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The most important reason to avoid obsessing over China’s disagreeable regime, however, is that this fixation threatens a core U.S. advantage: Washington’s wide network of partners and allies.Evan S. Medeiros, Foreign Affairs, 8 July 2021
Adjective
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Their surly landlord lurks around the apartment complex collecting rent on units in need of desperate repair.Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 15 Jan. 2025
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The Pacific Northwest, which has played host to a series of surly atmospheric rivers and a bomb cyclone in recent days, should finally quiet down.Nicole Fallert, USA TODAY, 25 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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And while there is enough splenetic wit and manic detail to generate obsessive fandom (entire sections of Web sites are dedicated to deciphering just what Kenny is mumbling), subjects like alien abduction, genetic engineering, and Kathie Lee are hardly original targets for satire.Chris Norris, SPIN, 13 Aug. 2022
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Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views.Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022
Adjective
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Everyone within her radius bears the germophobe’s wrath, with the only one who can occasionally pierce through her bilious anger being her upbeat hair-stylist sister Chantal (Michelle Austin), a mother of two vibrant daughters.Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 10 Jan. 2025
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The piece ran under an illustration of a black spatula dripping sinister goblets of melting plastic, against a background of bilious green.Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 24 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near ill-tempered
Cite this Entry
“Ill-tempered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill-tempered. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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