feisty
Americanadjective
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full of animation, energy, or courage; spirited; spunky; plucky.
The champion is faced with a feisty challenger.
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ill-tempered; pugnacious.
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troublesome; difficult.
feisty legal problems.
adjective
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lively, resilient, and self-reliant
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frisky
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irritable
Usage
What does feisty mean? Feisty is used to describe someone or something that is full of energy or courage. Someone who’s described as feisty usually has a strong will and is unafraid of showing it, even in difficult circumstances or when challenged. Feisty is also used to describe a person or animal that is ill-tempered: Jack gets feisty when he is tired. Sometimes feisty is used to describe someone or something that is troublesome: My computer gets feisty whenever the software updates. Feisty can be used as a compliment, praising someone’s courage, spiritedness, or pluckiness. Or it can be used somewhat critically, suggesting someone is prone to getting angry. Feisty depends on how someone thinks about the words and actions of the person or thing they think is feisty. Example: It took hours to catch the feisty puppy who easily outran all of us.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of feisty
Explanation
Feisty is a word for someone who is touchy or quarrelsome. It can also mean "showing courage or determination." If you're huffy or thin-skinned, you're feisty. Feisty people often seem to be itching for a fight. On the other hand, this has a more positive meaning. It may also describe a courageous or spirited person, especially one who is smaller or an underdog. A small boxer knocking out a huge opponent is feisty. Little dogs barking at huge dogs are feisty in both senses: they're being brave, but they're also a little too quick to open their yaps.
Vocabulary lists containing feisty
Dear Martin
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Game Changer
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Warriors Don't Cry (Abridged)
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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.
Victoria Smurfit, who plays Maud O'Hara, Declan's feisty wife, says the increased ambition for the new season is noticeable.
From BBC • May 13, 2026
A feisty audience watches from the balcony or nearby monitors, where the action—and their prediction bets on it—flashes on the screens.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 13, 2026
Felix Passlack, a feisty and impressive operator in the rearguard battle, lost the run of himself.
From BBC • Apr. 26, 2026
"We'll have to monitor those feisty cumulus clouds and potentially a few showers and breezes as well," Mark Burger, the launch weather officer, said Tuesday.
From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026
“She says feisty people make good workers and that we have to pay her rent.”
From "Between Shades of Gray" by Ruta Sepetys
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.
