temperamental

[tem-per-uh-men-tl, -pruh-men-, -per-men-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR temperamental ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

having or exhibiting a strongly marked, individual temperament.

moody, irritable, or sensitive: a temperamental artist.

given to erratic behavior; unpredictable.

of or relating to temperament; constitutional: temperamental differences.

Nearby words

Origin of temperamental

First recorded in 1640–50; temperament + -al¹

SYNONYMS FOR temperamental

2. excitable, volatile, emotional.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR temperamental ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

tem·per·a·men·tal·ly, adverbnon·tem·per·a·men·tal, adjectivenon·tem·per·a·men·tal·ly, adverbun·tem·per·a·men·tal, adjective

un·tem·per·a·men·tal·ly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for temperamental

Both a rocket engine with a temperamental record and an airframe of revolutionary design and construction had to be proved safe.
Virgin Galactic’s Flight Path to Disaster: A Clash of High Risk and Hyperbole|Clive Irving|November 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
His father could be temperamental and misogynistic, but the family was never plagued with major money-laundering or sex scandals.
Frank Schaeffer, the Atheist Who Believes in God|Nick Tabor|August 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In addition to his temperamental aversion to populism, Roosevelt also had a practical reason to be cautious.
The GOP’s Last Identity Crisis Remade U.S. Politics|Michael Wolraich|July 24, 2014|DAILY BEAST
There, Armstrong became famous for flying the dangerous and temperamental X-15 rocket plane.
Buzz Aldrin: Neil Armstrong Was ‘The Best Pilot I Ever Knew’|Taylor Dinerman|August 27, 2012|DAILY BEAST

If a writer is by definition a temperamental soul, than a Russian writer represents perhaps a most temperamental soul.
‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette,’ ‘The Black Rhinos of Namibia,’ ‘The Wives’|Nicholas Mancusi|August 6, 2012|DAILY BEAST
They do, in truth, differ widely from the works which they succeeded, but the difference is not temperamental.
French Art|W. C. Brownell
Perhaps she implied the temperamental little thing found herself in a class, all by herself, in this regard.
Nothing But the Truth|Frederic S. Isham
To temperamental pairing, he declared, the century owed its breed of decadents.
The Pool in the Desert|Sara Jeanette Duncan
All this evidence of my temperamental instability alarms and distresses me on reflection and makes the soul weary.
The Journal of a Disappointed Man|Wilhelm Nero Pilate Barbellion
"He seems a temperamental person," Mr. Stott replied, evasively.
The Dude Wrangler|Caroline Lockhart

British Dictionary definitions for temperamental

temperamental

adjective

easily upset or irritated; excitable; volatile

of, relating to, or caused by temperament

informal working erratically and inconsistently; unreliablea temperamental sewing machine

Derived Formstemperamentally, adverb

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

Word Origin and History for temperamental

temperamental

adj.

"of or pertaining to temperament," 1640s, from temperament; in the sense of "moody" it is recorded from 1907.

temperamental

adjective

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Origin of temperamental

Examples from the Web for temperamental

temperamental

adjective

temperamental