as in irritable
easily irritated or annoyed
a petulant and fussy man who is always blaming everyone else for his problems
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Recent Examples of petulant
Year: 2022 Director: Jafar Panahi Runtime: 1h 47m Panahi’s most recent release available for streaming, No Bears, is worlds away from his first petulant responses to the regime’s ban on his filmmaking.
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Tiara Ataii, Vulture, 24 June 2025
Not to mention the similarities with our petulant current president, of course.
—Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 16 July 2025
Martin Winkler, Fort Lauderdale Protecting PBS, NPR Americans have never elevated a more thin-skinned, petulant person to the presidency than the current guy.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 8 May 2025
Panahi’s most recent release available for streaming, No Bears, is worlds away from his first petulant responses to the regime’s ban on his filmmaking.
—Tiara Ataii, Vulture, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for petulant
Tiara Ataii, Vulture, 24 June 2025
Not to mention the similarities with our petulant current president, of course.
—Matt Zoller Seitz, Vulture, 16 July 2025
Martin Winkler, Fort Lauderdale Protecting PBS, NPR Americans have never elevated a more thin-skinned, petulant person to the presidency than the current guy.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 8 May 2025
Panahi’s most recent release available for streaming, No Bears, is worlds away from his first petulant responses to the regime’s ban on his filmmaking.
—Tiara Ataii, Vulture, 24 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for petulant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for petulant
Adjective
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Avi tries to comfort his grieving (read: irritable) mother by saying at least his grandmother and grandfather are together again in Heaven.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
22 Aug. 2025
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For years men have blamed divorce on menopause and said women are irritable and irrational, says Alyx Coble-Frake, founder of The Agenda, an app that helps women track their menstrual cycle to help increase productivity.—
Laura Trujillo,
USA Today,
14 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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While Starship traveled its furthest distance of 2025 during its May 27 flight, the test marked the third time in a row that the spacecraft came apart in a fiery mishap before attempting key objectives.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
27 Aug. 2025
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After the intensity of the Virgo New Moon and the deep-dive vibes of the Scorpio Moon earlier in the week, this fiery lunar shift invites us to shake things off.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Petulant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petulant. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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