testy

adjective

tes·​ty ˈte-stē 

testier; testiest

1

: easily annoyed : irritable

2

: marked by impatience or ill humor

testy remarks

testily

ˈte-stə-lē 

adverb

testiness

ˈte-stē-nəs 

noun

Synonyms

• irritable
• fiery

Examples of testy in a Sentence

that coworker would be easier to get along with if she weren't so testy all the time

Recent Examples on the Web

But despite his testy exterior, Quincy and Maggie (Kohan) might find common ground, and could learn from one another’s experiences. —Denise Petski, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2025

Things got testy between Florida and LSU during warm ups ahead of last week's tilt, and among the multiple pregame scuffles, one sticks out above the rest because of associate head coach and running backs coach Jabbar Juluke's involvement. —Michael Gallagher, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 Sep. 2025

But the Spirit pilots did not respond immediately, leading the testy air traffic controller to scold them repeatedly. —Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2025

Mark, of course, is the celebrity breadwinner, going for big cash prizes, but Dawn offsets his demands with a testy righteousness that takes on a life of its own. —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 1 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English testif, from Anglo-French, headstrong, from teste head — more at tester entry 2

First Known Use

1523, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for testy

• arrestee
• contestee

Kids Definition

testy

adjective

tes·​ty ˈtes-tē 

testier; testiest

: easily annoyed : irritable

testily

-tə-lē 

adverb

testiness

-tē-nəs 

noun