galling

adjective

gall·​ing ˈgȯ-liŋ How to pronounce galling (audio)
: markedly irritating : vexing
a most galling defeat
gallingly adverb

Examples of galling in a Sentence

This is a galling defeat. her holier-than-thou attitude is galling
Recent Examples on the Web Of course, people with narrow properties could up paying more per year under the flat rate structure than the by-the-foot arrangement, something that is especially galling to Peggy Sue Andre. Joe Rubino, The Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2024 Min, one of the 21 million people who buy natural gas from SoCalGas, adds that the utilities’ efforts to undo clean-air rules on his behalf was particularly galling. Andre Mouchard, Orange County Register, 20 Jan. 2024 By the time Arthur Barratt, commander of the British air forces in France, returned to his headquarters at Compiegne, where the galling armistice would be signed just five weeks later, the German offensive had already begun. Sam Roberts, Foreign Affairs, 2 June 2015 One of the more galling tactics used by pro-Palestinian activists, including many in the mainstream progressive movement, is to claim that Israel is conducting a genocide against the Palestinian people. Mike Coté, National Review, 26 Oct. 2023 For Israel, perhaps the most galling outcome of this asymmetry is that its armed forces may have played squarely into Hamas’s hands by striking Gaza with tremendous force. Audrey Kurth Cronin, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2023 But the idea of cutting support for rooftop solar is especially galling to much of the environmental movement. Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2023 In this light, one feature of his fictional Sitka is particularly galling. Jack Butler, National Review, 4 Nov. 2023 This particular oversight feels especially galling: Palm Springs lies only three and a half hours from Tijuana. Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'galling.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

from present participle of gall entry 2

First Known Use

1583, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of galling was in 1583

Dictionary Entries Near galling

Cite this Entry

“Galling.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/galling. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

galling

adjective
gall·​ing ˈgȯ-liŋ How to pronounce galling (audio)
: very irritating : vexing

More from Merriam-Webster on galling

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