irritate

American  

[ir-i-teyt] / ˈɪr ɪˌteɪt /

verb (used with object)

irritated, irritating

1. to excite to impatience or anger; annoy.

   Synonyms:

   inflame, infuriate, enrage, incense, pic, ruffle, nettle, gall, fret, chafe, vex

2. Physiology, Biology. to excite (a living system) to some characteristic action or function.

3. Pathology. to bring (a body part) to an abnormally excited or sensitive condition.

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verb (used without object)

irritated, irritating

1. to cause irritation or become irritated.

irritate British  

/ ˈɪrɪˌteɪt /

verb

1. to annoy or anger (someone)

2. (tr) biology to stimulate (an organism or part) to respond in a characteristic manner

3. (tr) pathol to cause (a bodily organ or part) to become excessively stimulated, resulting in inflammation, tenderness, etc

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Related Words

Irritate, exasperate, provoke mean to annoy or stir to anger. To irritate is to excite to impatience or angry feeling, often of no great depth or duration: to irritate by refusing to explain an action. To exasperate is to irritate to a point where self-control is threatened or lost: to exasperate by continual delays and excuses. To provoke is to stir to a sudden, strong feeling of resentful anger as by unwarrantable acts or wanton annoyance: to tease and provoke an animal until it attacks.

Other Word Forms

• irritator
  noun

Etymology

Origin of irritate

1525–35; < Latin irrītātus, past participle of irrītāre to arouse to anger, excite, aggravate, equivalent to irritā- v. stem + -tus past participle suffix

Explanation

To irritate is to cause an unsettling reaction, whether it's of the body or the nerves. You can irritate someone by talking too loudly on your cellphone in public. You can also irritate your skin, causing a rash or redness. To irritate is to disturb — either physically or psychologically. When you have an allergic reaction to something, you irritate or disturb the body. When you have an allergic reaction to your kid brother, he is probably irritating you with his annoying habits. And what is the result of something irritating? An irritation of course.

Example Sentences

That kind of dust is known to irritate the airways making it easier for bacteria to go from harmlessly sitting there to invading the body.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

The justices have already dealt with the contraceptive mandate and the Little Sisters twice, and this latest challenge seems designed to irritate them.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 22, 2025

Is there one you bought specifically to irritate Don Henley?

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2025

These overstimulated immune cells then move toward the dorsal root ganglia -- the sensory nerve hubs that link the limbs to the spinal cord -- and release inflammatory compounds that irritate and damage nerves.

From Science Daily • Nov. 21, 2025

A training officer named Hill told us that our job would be unusually difficult, because “OJTs irritate inmates.”

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

Related Words

• aggravate
• annoy
• bother
• confuse
• disturb
• enrage
• exasperate
• gall
• incense
• inflame
• infuriate
• irk
• offend
• peeve
• provoke
• rankle
• rattle
• rile
• sour
• vex