dyspeptic
Americanadjective
-
pertaining to, subject to, or suffering from dyspepsia.
-
gloomy, pessimistic, and irritable.
noun
adjective
-
relating to or suffering from dyspepsia
-
irritable
noun
Other Word Forms
- dyspeptically adverb
- nondyspeptic adjective
- nondyspeptical adjective
- nondyspeptically adverb
Etymology
Origin of dyspeptic
1685–95; dys- + Greek peptikós pertaining to digestion, equivalent to pept ( ós ) digested ( pep- cook, digest + -tos past participle suffix) + -ikos -ic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Now, what tired, achy, occasionally dyspeptic middle-aged person doesn’t like the sound of that?
From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 7, 2025
Statler and Waldorf from “The Muppet Show” made a long-running joke of dyspeptic critics.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 4, 2024
Here, next to photos of Saban pacing the sideline in dyspeptic determination, Alabama was a byword for discipline and achievement.
From New York Times • Jan. 11, 2024
His characteristically dyspeptic interview in the Wall Street Journal trivializes the intelligence and individuality of Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson for no apparent reason beyond petty resentment.
From Slate • Jul. 31, 2023
I felt sleepy, ill, as if this were some lingering and dyspeptic dream.
From "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
