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.
Mr. Massie has also irritated the president by raising his ties to Jeffrey Epstein, the convicted sex offender who committed suicide in 2019 while in jail awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 18, 2026
Elon Musk became visibly irritated on the witness stand Wednesday as an attorney for OpenAI questioned whether the billionaire backed off his financial commitment to the startup in its early years.
From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2026
"Few answers are going to be complete, especially when you cut me off all the time," the visibly irritated multibillionaire said as he resumed his duel Thursday morning with the defense attorney for OpenAI.
From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026
So you won't be remotely surprised when I tell you that it has left Labour folk from the cabinet down gloomy, run down and irritated.
From BBC • Apr. 24, 2026
Our reminiscences were interrupted by an irritated cluck.
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
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.
