Severe, strict, harsh. †Of persons: Severe or harsh in temper or mood (obsolete). Of temper, etc.: Irritable, irascible.

Not patient; not bearing or enduring (pain, discomfort, opposition, etc.) with composure; wanting in endurance; irritable, irascible, easily…

Bitter, irritable.

Touchy, testy, peevish, crabbed.

figurative. Inclined to fume, hot-tempered, irascible, passionate; also, characterized by or exhibiting anger or irascibility.

Prone to be irritated by small checks and annoyances; impatient of being thwarted; resentful of contradiction or opposition; irascible…

In later use: Cross-tempered, ill-conditioned, irritable, acrimonious, churlish; having asperity or acerbity of temper. Since 16th cent. a frequent…

Peevish, irritable, fretful.

Irritable, querulous; childishly fretful; characterized by or exhibiting petty bad temper. Of personal qualities, actions, behaviour, etc.

Given to kicking; irritable.

Having an irritably morose or peevish disposition or temperament; given or liable to fits of angry impatience or irritability; ill-humoured, testy…

Full of spleen; passionate, irritable, peevishly angry. Of persons (or animals).

Easily irritated or made angry; quick to take offence; short-tempered; peevish, irritable; testy. (Cf. t… Of persons.

irritable (as if stung by a wasp).

Highly sensitive in temper or disposition; easily offended or angered; liable to take offence with little cause; irascible, irritable, tetchy.

Spleenful; splenetic.

In extended use: characterized by excessive restlessness or curiosity; excitable, irritable, fretful. rare after 18th cent. Cf. prurient, adj. 1.

(See quots.)

Splenetic.

Enraged, angry.

Readily excited to anger or impatience; easily ruffled or annoyed.

Of persons: Spleenful.

= splenetic, adj. 3.

(See quot.)

colloquial. Of a person: bad-tempered, irritable; angry. Frequently in to turn rusty and variants. Cf. to ride rusty at phrases 1 to run rusty at…

Of people or animals: easily nettled, irritable. Obsolete.

Bad-tempered, irritable, peevish, cross. dialect.

Inclined to snarl; irritable, cross. Also transferred.

Irritable, testy, peevish.

Spleenful.

Angry, cross; irritable, bad-tempered. Now rare.

Of a person: irritable. Now rare.

Having one's nerves on edge; irritable; testy.

characteristic or suggestive of a porcupine, prickly.

colloquial (chiefly British). Bad-tempered, irritable, annoyed. Frequently in to get shirty. Cf. shirt, n. phrases 2h(a) phrases 2h(b).

Irritating; irritable; ill-tempered; sharp, waspish. Cf. raspy, adj. 2.

North American. Irritable, peevish; touchy.

slang. Irritable, ill-tempered.

Canadian and U.S. regional (chiefly Midwest). Peevish, irritable, fretful; cross, angry.

Bad-tempered, irritable, tetchy.

Of a baby or infant: irritable or dissatisfied; prone to crying or being upset.

Chiefly North American. Easily exasperated; irritable; ill-tempered.

figurative. Suggestive of spikes; sharp.

Cross, irritable, grumpy. Also in later use: touchy and defensive, esp. on account of having a grievance.

= tetchy, adj. 1.

Irritable, bad-tempered; sarcastic, disparaging.

Irritable, short-tempered, ‘narky’.

Irritable; ‘ornery’; angry.

British slang. Chiefly with lower-case initial. Originally: †an irritable or bad-tempered person (obsolete). Later: a fit of bad temper, a bad…

figurative. Australian and New Zealand slang. = crook, adj. 2c; esp. in crooked on, angry at. Usually pronounced/krʊkt/.

= niggling, adj. (in various senses). Also: irritable, short-tempered.

Supercilious, haughty, conceited; affecting superiority, snobbish; ‘highbrow’, ‘stuck-up’. Occasionally, irritable, short-tempered.

Given to or characterized by complaining or criticizing; ill-tempered, irritable.

slang (originally and chiefly U.S.). to be on the rag:(a) to be menstruating (cf. sense 4a); (b) (of either sex) to be irritable or angry, to be in…

figurative. Chiefly attributive or as adj., rough, abrasive, aggressive.

Irritable, bad-tempered.

Splenetic, spleenful.