irritate

[ir-i-teyt]

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.

verb (used without object)

irritated, irritating 

1. to cause irritation or become irritated.

irritate

/ 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

Other Word Forms

• irritator noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of irritate¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of irritate¹

C16: from Latin irrītāre to provoke, exasperate

Synonym Study

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.

Example Sentences

Failing to pass the package risks irritating Musk, which would introduce unnecessary uncertainty into the stock.

Read more on Barron's

The sense of unchecked privilege surrounding Andrew has genuinely irritated the public and it will take more than taking away his titles to dispel the sense of ugly entitlement.

Read more on BBC

Sly, wry, adorable and deplorable, Guillaume Marbeck is priceless as the endlessly irritating and yet frustratingly charismatic Godard in one of the year’s brightest pictures, a rare standout in a sea of multiplex mediocrity.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Failing to pass the package would create uncertainty for Tesla shareholders and likely irritate Musk.

Read more on Barron's

YouTube TV is already seeking rates similar to what bigger distributors Comcast and Charter pay, which irritates programmers, some of the people familiar with the matter said.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

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