rankle
verb (used without object)
(of unpleasant feelings, experiences, etc.) to continue to cause keen irritation or bitter resentment within the mind; fester; be painful.
rankled
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past participleof rankle.past participle
A verb form used in perfect and passive verb constructions and that can also function as a modifier.
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past tense formof rankle.past tense
Used to describe completed actions or previous habitual actions.
rankleverb (used without object)(of unpleasant feelings, experiences, etc.) to continue to cause keen irritation or bitter resentment within the mind; fester; be painful.
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.
But he didn’t get direct access to President John F. Kennedy—an absurd demand, of course—and this rankled with him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
We lead today with new reporting on the unraveling of Situational Awareness, detailing how its wunderkind founder Leopold Aschenbrenner forged close ties with tech’s top players even as he rankled some of his own bosses.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Finishing fourth was not a failure but it will have rankled with perfectionist Emery.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
That rankled politicians in Berlin and executives at Airbus, who feared being squeezed out of contracts.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
As Kvothe spoke, his expression twisted, as if each word he spoke rankled him more and more.
From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss
