rankle

play

verb ran·kle \ ˈraŋ-kəl \

Definition of rankle

rankled; rankling play \-k(ə-)liŋ\

intransitive verb

1 :to cause anger, irritation, or deep bitterness

2 :to feel anger and irritation

transitive verb

:to cause irritation or bitterness in

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rankle was our Word of the Day on 03/09/2016. Hear the podcast!

Examples of rankle in a Sentence

The joke about her family rankled her.
that kind of rude treatment from a young person makes me rankle

Recent Examples of rankle from the Web

That has rankled some of those involved in buying the Marlins.

— dave hyde, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Hyde5: David Samson won't be back under new Marlins ownership," 18 Aug. 2017
While agreeing that the drug offers some hope to patients, the price tag rankles Donna Sullivan, chief pharmacy officer for Washington State Health Care Authority, which oversees Medicaid.

— julie appleby, Kaiser Health News, "Drug Puts A $750,000 ‘Price Tag On Life’," 2 Aug. 2017
The year after Long rankled the Boise State faithful with his comments, the Broncos lost twice at Albertsons Stadium.

— dave southorn, idahostatesman, "Could 2017 be a turning point for Boise State, for better or worse?," 29 July 2017
Little surprise, then, that the Trump’s administration lax approach to ethics rules rankled Chen.

— adam k. raymond, Daily Intelligencer, "DOJ Ethics Watchdog Resigns Because Trump Made Her Feel Like a Hypocrite," 3 July 2017
The decision to hire WSP rankled Charlotte urban planner and consultant Michael Gallis, who helped design the city’s original transit plan.

— steve harrison, charlotteobserver, "Will Charlotte’s new $3.2 million transit consultant propose an uptown subway?," 2 July 2017
Farassati was referring to an opinion survey commissioned by the association that rankled several members of the committee.

— by roxie hammill, kansascity.com, "Asphalt cul-de-sacs still on the road in Overland Park," 30 June 2017
The sale rankled some shareholders who see land as a cultural touchstone and a tangible asset the corporation could pass on to future generations.

— jeannette lee falsey, Alaska Dispatch News, "Alaska Native corporation in Sitka faces shareholder uprising as revenues drop and CEO pay rises," 26 June 2017
That would rankle purists who judge players by chase rates, exit velocity and slugging percentage.

— david whitley, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Tim Tebow earned his baseball promotion," 25 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'rankle.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

The Connection Between rankle and Dragon

The history of today's word is something of a sore subject. When rankle was first used in English, it meant "to fester," and that meaning is linked to the word's Old French ancestor—the noun raoncle or draoncle, which meant "festering sore." Etymologists think this Old French word was derived from the Latin dracunculus, a diminutive form of draco, which means "serpent" and which is the source of the English word dragon. The transition from serpents to sores apparently occurred because people thought certain ulcers or tumors looked like small serpents.

Origin and Etymology of rankle

Middle English ranclen to fester, from Anglo-French rancler, from Old French draoncler, raoncler, from draoncle, raoncle festering sore, from Medieval Latin dracunculus, from Latin, diminutive of draco serpent — more at dragon

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First Known Use: 1606

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