irritated
Americanadjective
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angered, provoked, or annoyed.
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inflamed or made raw, as a part of the body.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of irritated
Explanation
When you're irritated, you're annoyed. You'd probably be irritated if someone ate the leftover Indian food that you were saving for lunch. The adjective irritated describes a state that's a little milder than anger. When you're irritated about something, you're impatient or exasperated, the way you feel when someone rubs you the wrong way. Irritated can also mean this quite literally; your wrist might be irritated by the rubbing of your new watch band. The word irritated comes from the Latin irritatus, which means "excite or provoke." Anything that provokes you in an annoying way can make you irritated.
Vocabulary lists containing irritated
Emotions on Display
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In the Mood? 100 Words to Describe Emotions
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Mad Infinitum: Synonyms for "Angry"
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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.
The incident did not appear premeditated, with Itauma looking irritated by what Hrgovic was saying before the shove.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
One imagines irritated Michigan Wolverines burning checkbooks and disavowing money-market accounts as they drink their spritzes at Ann Arbor tailgates—but inside Columbus, this is like getting to sponsor religion.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Her in-laws had a different reaction: “We were showing them the house, and they got more irritated with every room — like, ‘You have books in here too?’
From Salon ● Jul. 23, 2026
He remains in the Cy Young conversation, despite pitching only 85 ⅔ innings in the first half because of the Dodgers’ six-man rotation and a missed start stemming from an irritated left knee.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 12, 2026
Despite the archness of his tone—which normally would have irritated me—there was a melancholy undernote in his voice.
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.
