rankle

verb ran·kle \ ˈraŋ-kəl \

|Updated on: 12 Jun 2018

Examples: rankle in a Sentence

Editor's Note: The Connection Between rankle and Dragon

Definition of rankle

rankled; rankling play \ˈraŋ-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

But the remarks still rankled in Pyongyang, and spoke to an apparent lack of understanding by Trump and those around him of North Korea's intentions going into the Singapore summit.

— james griffiths, CNN, "Moon heads to US amid fears for Trump-Kim summit," 21 May 2018
These moves have rankled scanner enthusiasts who range from people curious about police activity in their neighborhood to modern-day Weegees, the New York City freelance photographer known for his raw crime-scene photos.

— zusha elinson, WSJ, "Want to Listen to Police Scanners? Cops Say No More," 17 May 2018
The circulation of bland job titles and favorable stories, in the absence of any information about intelligence misjudgments or operations gone wrong, has rankled critics who say the CIA has mounted a propaganda operation to boost Haspel's chances.

— ken dilanian /, NBC News, "Why do so many spies support Gina Haspel to head the CIA? That's classified," 8 May 2018
While the administration’s America First approach rankled other nations, Mnuchin did announce a change in position with the World Bank, one of several multilateral institutions that Trump officials have criticized in the past.

— martin crutsinger, The Seattle Times, "Mnuchin expresses optimism for resolution of trade fights," 21 Apr. 2018
Studesville, whose firing rankled running back C.J. Anderson and other Broncos, is interviewing for the Giants' head coaching job Thursday.

— USA TODAY, "Elway, Joseph promise to fix Broncos' problems in 2018," 2 Jan. 2018
Kardashian, 37, also rankled followers who accused her of promoting eating disorders.

— michele corriston, PEOPLE.com, "Actress Calls Kim Kardashian a 'Toxic Influence on Young Girls' Over Flat Tummy Lollipops," 17 May 2018
There was a reason for Summer’s coronation as the disco queen, however much the moniker came to rankle.

— chris jones, chicagotribune.com, "'Summer: The Donna Summer Musical' is where the disco ball spins the real truth," 24 Apr. 2018
Sessions’s recusal from the Russia probe has continued to rankle the president, according to administration officials, and the attorney general has become embroiled in other internal battles in recent months.

— Washington Post, "Mueller seeks to question Trump about Flynn and Comey departures," 6 Mar. 2018

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

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1606

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year