peeved

American  

[peevd] / pivd /

adjective

1. annoyed; irritated; vexed.

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Other Word Forms

• peevedly adverb
• peevedness noun

Etymology

Origin of peeved

An Americanism dating back to 1905–10; peeve + -ed ²

Explanation

When you're peeved, you're extremely annoyed or irritated. If you eat the donut that your sister was saving for later, she's going to be so peeved! The adjective peeved comes from an older one, peevish, which originally meant "silly," and later came to mean "cross or fretful." You've probably heard of "pet peeves," those particular annoyances that drive you crazy? Peeved is how you feel when faced with such annoyances, like tiny rocks in your shoe as you walk to school, terrible music in a restaurant, or a bad referee call against your favorite basketball team.

Example Sentences

I loved the scene in which Arthur fires off a peeved response to a hater in his comments.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

Recalls a peeved Mr. Blankfein: “It was like the undertaker calling at your sickbed.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

He pulls a “do you know who I am” whenever he gets peeved, which is a lot.

From Slate • Nov. 21, 2024

Going to Brentford would be tough anyway, but I watched the Bees at Old Trafford last week and they must be pretty peeved to have lost after such a good first half.

From BBC • Oct. 24, 2024

I was peeved enough at Roy Lee to not answer, but then I figured it would aggravate him more to tell the truth.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam