- present participle of irritate.
irritating
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of irritating
First recorded in 1700–10; irritat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
If something's irritating, it annoys you. To most people, tuneless whistling and fingernails on a chalkboard are both irritating sounds. Irritating things bug you. A little kid kicking the back of your seat on an airplane, a driver who follows you too closely on the highway, an early morning work crew right outside your bedroom window — all of these things can be irritating. A more physical way for something to be irritating is if it causes irritation — like a rash or soreness or pain. Your new watch may be irritating to your skin, leaving a red mark on your wrist.
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.
Their goal isn’t to make monitors play catchy tunes, Schlesinger says, but to make alarms easier to distinguish, less irritating and more informative.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
There is something uniquely irritating about being emotionally pursued by a corporation that has also failed to notice you moved away.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2026
It said the tell-tale signs of bedbugs include red, irritating bites and small blood smears on bed linen; and small brown insects in or around the sleeping area.
From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026
Letisha Lucas, a 33-year-old tourist from Canada -- which has its own wildfires happening -- said the smoke smell was immediately obvious on arrival in Madrid "and very irritating on the throat".
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
“Kelton sits shotgun,” I declare, “because at least when he’s irritating, it’s informational.”
From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman
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.
