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.
She said it’s more irritating, for instance, to overhear social-media videos than to witness a face-to-face conversation at the same volume, because “personal listening devices are supposed to be personal.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026
Having sold her show about young, hip and irritating urbanites to HBO at the age of 24, Dunham was one of the first millennial showrunners, period.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
They said the coverage of the Instagram re-post row had been "deeply irritating" but added that the review was not directly linked to that incident.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
“Essential oils are natural and can be irritating allergens. And ‘chemical-free skincare’ is scientifically impossible; water is a chemical, lipids are chemicals, and vitamins are chemicals.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The soldier with the orange sighed heavily, as if she were really irritating him.
From "Habibi" by Naomi Shihab Nye
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
