snap at

Idioms  

1. Speak irritably or abruptly to someone, as in This teacher was always snapping at the children. This use of snap transfers an animal's sudden bite at something to a verbal attack. [Late 1500s]

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Example Sentences

“I don’t want you—I want Walter!” she snaps at her computer companion when he responds sympathetically to a sudden, anguished access of grief.

From The Wall Street Journal

One former Treasury minister, Lord Bridges, told the Lords: "This is not a fiscal buffer; it is a fiscal wafer, so thin and fragile that it will snap at the slightest tap."

From BBC

Instead of the entire plate snapping at once, it tears apart in smaller sections.

From Science Daily

Porter came under criticism last week for snapping at a CBS reporter and threatening to end the interview.

From Los Angeles Times

The man snaps at her saying "don't tell me what to do".

From BBC

Related Words

• blow up
• boil over
• erupt
• rampage
• roar
• seethe
• tear