irritation
Americannoun
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the act of irritating or the state of being irritated.
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something that irritates.
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Physiology, Pathology.
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the bringing of a bodily part or organ to an abnormally excited or sensitive condition.
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the condition itself.
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noun
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something that irritates
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the act of irritating or the condition of being irritated
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of irritation
First recorded in 1580–90, irritation is from the Latin word irrītātiōn- (stem of irrītātiō ). See irritate, -ion
Explanation
An irritation is a situation or action that annoys someone — emotionally or physically. Your off-key singing in the car might be an irritation to the driver, or that poison ivy could be an irritation as well. It's an irritation when you're bothering someone else, and it's also irritation when you're the one feeling irked: "My irritation increased the longer the train sat there, unmoving, with no explanation." The earliest meaning of this word was more physical, a "sore or swollen spot," from the Latin root word irritare, "excite or provoke."
Vocabulary lists containing irritation
That Hurts! Synonyms for "Pain"
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The Sound and the Fury: Synonyms for "Anger"
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Unit 5, Week 1
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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.
See Examples For:
“I did that yesterday, when I was a kid,” he sings over hectic guitar strums, and his trilling digital falsetto, warped to maximize irritation, makes clear that those days are far behind him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 28, 2026
The toxic bacteria which can cause skin irritation and sickness in people and animals who come into contact with it, has become an unwelcome feature of recent summers.
From BBC ● Jul. 26, 2026
He instigates them, and pedantically reminds her of the rules, but his surprise and irritation become conflagrations of rage as Fonsia wins hand after hand, remaining placid and mildly abashed at her luck.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
However, other experiments have found that under different circumstances it could promote tumor growth or contribute to tissue irritation.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Lane watched her for a moment with mounting irritation.
From "Franny and Zooey" by J. D. Salinger
First, it can show up as small irritations — like feeling annoyed with the bureaucracy or the transportation system.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
More than two dozen underage farmworkers and their parents said in interviews that they worked in fields that smelled of chemicals and described feeling sick and dizzy or suffering from skin irritations.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 5, 2025
But escape from the irritations of that companionship seems a still bleaker prospect—and an impossibility.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 31, 2025
Residents in Delhi have reported eye irritations and breathing issues, according to local media.
From BBC ● Nov. 14, 2024
Over time, we have figured out how to express and overcome our irritations and occasional rage.
From "Becoming" by Michelle Obama
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.
