ireful
Americanadjective
-
full of intense anger; wrathful.
-
easily roused to anger; irascible.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ireful
Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at ire, -ful
Explanation
Use the adjective ireful to describe someone who's furious. You'll probably be ireful when you realize that your little brother used your favorite dress shirt as an apron when he baked brownies. The word ireful is an uncommon, old-fashioned way to say "really angry." You may tend to be an ireful driver, yelling and gesturing at other cars, or you might write an ireful letter to the editor of a newspaper after reading a badly reported, inaccurate story. When you're ireful, you're full of ire, which comes from Latin and means "wrath, anger, rage, or passion."
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.
It makes me ireful to think o’ them.
From "Dracula" by Bram Stoker
Full ireful he went; Fiercely he fought; flight he disdained.
From Old English Poems Translated into the Original Meter Together with Short Selections from Old English Prose by Various
The lieutenant twisted his derby in chagrined, ireful hands.
From No. 13 Washington Square by Scott, Leroy
But his ireful restlessness will not allow him to accept this concession.
From Doctor Cupid by Broughton, Rhoda
"Where are you goin', Aaron?" asked the placid Louada Murilla, troubled by his ireful demeanor.
From The Skipper and the Skipped Being the Shore Log of Cap'n Aaron Sproul by Day, Holman
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.
