temperamental
/ˌtɛmp(ə)rəˈmɛnt(ə)l
/adjective
1(Of a person) liable to unreasonable changes of mood: a temperamental film star figurative a temperamental engine that had a way of conking out when put in gear...
- Tina bit her lip, wondering what kind of a mood her temperamental friend was in.
- He might be a volatile, temperamental person but, she did not think that he was actually dangerous.
- Her character is a fiery, temperamental woman who likes to get her own way.
Synonyms
volatile, excitable, emotional, overemotional, mercurial, capricious, erratic, unpredictable, changeable, inconsistent, unstable, hot-headed, fiery, explosive, hot-tempered, short-tempered, quick-tempered, irritable, irascible, impatient, petulant, prima donna-ish, melodramatic;
touchy, moody, sensitive, oversensitive, hypersensitive, highly strung, neurotic, easily upset
informal on a short fuse
2Relating to a person’s temperament: they were firm friends in spite of temperamental differences...
- And there are temperamental differences among children.
- And these religious temperamental differences of course, they're very much prominent in their literary output and their way of life.
- Any mother of more than one child can see temperamental differences in her offspring almost from the moment of birth, qualities which only become more pronounced as her children age.
Synonyms
inherent, innate, natural, inborn, constitutional, deep-rooted, ingrained, congenital
Derivatives
temperamentally
/ adverb ...- I feel very strongly that I belong to Scotland, I'm temperamentally Scots by character and by commitment.
- My brief assignments in corporate offices have not been entirely comfortable; temperamentally I am a hands-on man who likes to see the results of initiatives actually work on the ground.
- And if you put two or three people in one group who are all temperamentally incompatible, then I am pretty sure it would affect their performance.