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View synonyms for petulant

petulant

[ pech-uh-luhnt ]

adjective

  1. moved to or showing sudden, impatient irritation, especially over some trifling annoyance:

    a petulant toss of the head.

    Synonyms: touchy, pettish, fretful, peevish, irritable



petulant

/ ˈpɛtjʊlənt /

adjective

  1. irritable, impatient, or sullen in a peevish or capricious way
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


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Derived Forms

  • ˈpetulance, noun
  • ˈpetulantly, adverb
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Other Words From

  • pet·u·lant·ly adverb
  • un·pet·u·lant adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of petulant1

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin petulant- (stem of petulāns ) “impudent,” akin to petere “to seek, head for”
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Word History and Origins

Origin of petulant1

C16: via Old French from Latin petulāns bold, from petulāre (unattested) to attack playfully, from petere to assail
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Example Sentences

There to stay, tucked back in some recess of my brain, petulant, an ever-nagging reminder of having been Isabel.

At best, if the stories are true, you sound petulant, cosseted, and bratty.

He can seem on occasion morose, on other occasions petulant, and never comfortable in interviews.

The slimy, childish, petulant Viserys starts off as a symbol of everything about Targaryen rule Westeros has rejected.

Petulant billionaires singlehandedly funded rivals to Mitt Romney.

They seem, in fact, like cranky, petulant children, coked to the gills.

"It is very tiresome," said Ethel, nearly convinced, but in a slightly petulant voice.

Now there was something half tired, half petulant, and wholly puzzled about her face as she swept into the room.

They are petulant, capricious, and despite their apparent energy they accomplish nothing.

With a noisy, petulant fluttering of foliage the bushes sprang back to their former position.

He noted, too, that her gorgeous ash-blond hair had been carefully "done," piled in high masses above her petulant face.

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