as in irritable
having or showing a habitually bad temper
a bilious old dog who snaps at everyone
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Recent Examples of bilious
And Emily’s side of the family isn't much better, represented by her mean, bilious aunt (Allison Janney, herself no slouch in the hissing-authority department) and her boozy mother (Elizabeth Perkins, replacing Jean Smart from the first film).
—
Tom Gliatto, People.com, 30 Apr. 2025
Under Nézet-Séguin, the musicians do the job spectacularly, releasing all those bilious harmonies and seething rhythms in an unbroken two-hour spasm of excitement.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2025
In the Nineties, the report became a staple in the bilious feedstock of right-wing militias, part of a slurry of propaganda that turned legitimate grievances into the conviction that FEMA agents in unmarked black helicopters were soon to enact a new world order.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harper's Magazine, 19 Feb. 2025
The death chamber is nine feet by twelve feet, painted a bilious turquoise.
—Lawrence Wright, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bilious
Tom Gliatto, People.com, 30 Apr. 2025
Under Nézet-Séguin, the musicians do the job spectacularly, releasing all those bilious harmonies and seething rhythms in an unbroken two-hour spasm of excitement.
—Justin Davidson, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2025
In the Nineties, the report became a staple in the bilious feedstock of right-wing militias, part of a slurry of propaganda that turned legitimate grievances into the conviction that FEMA agents in unmarked black helicopters were soon to enact a new world order.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harper's Magazine, 19 Feb. 2025
The death chamber is nine feet by twelve feet, painted a bilious turquoise.
—Lawrence Wright, The New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bilious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bilious
Adjective
-
Rather than get irritable online, Medeiros did something positive about it.—
Dan Medeiros,
The Herald News,
27 Feb. 2026
-
Manic episodes are described as prolonged periods of mood instability, in which a person can experience extreme increases in energy or euphoria, or alternatively, feel depressed or unusually irritable.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
24 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Burkle alleges that Anderson stopped paying him in 2014 after becoming angry with him over an unspecified personal dispute, the complaint states.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Our tormentor is angry the state chose Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024 and has not met his demands to stop mail-in voting and release his supporter and fellow election denier Tina Peters from prison.—
Krista Kafer,
Denver Post,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views.—
Sarah Lyall,
New York Times,
17 Sep. 2022
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And while there is enough splenetic wit and manic detail to generate obsessive fandom (entire sections of Web sites are dedicated to deciphering just what Kenny is mumbling), subjects like alien abduction, genetic engineering, and Kathie Lee are hardly original targets for satire.—
Chris Norris,
SPIN,
13 Aug. 2022
Adjective
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Better is Danny Elfman’s spartan and fraught score, particularly the dyspeptic drums.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
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But Kael sensed in her less dyspeptic moments that there was something special about Redford.—
Stephen Galloway,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
An arrest has been made in an acid attack on a Long Island college student that happened nearly five years ago.—
Alexa Herrera,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
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As wine lovers’ taste in Chardonnay has moved from ripe and buttery to lean and racy, higher-acid, more-flavorful versions have come into vogue.—
Mike DeSimone,
Robb Report,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The day was cold and disagreeable, disappointing those who hoped for warm, sunny weather for the contest between Bogardus and Carver.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
24 Feb. 2026
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This will also result in a disagreeable flavor most people will not enjoy.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
12 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
High pop flys in left field during day games at the club’s spring ballpark have proven at times to be a cantankerous venture.—
Shawn McFarland,
Dallas Morning News,
22 Feb. 2026
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Close leads the series as Maud Oldcastle, an older woman described as cantankerous and also a killer.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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With two adults, three children, and one ornery cat living in the same house, keeping track of everyone’s stuff can sometimes seem overwhelming.—
Libby Monteith Minor,
Southern Living,
21 Feb. 2026
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But Duvall rose to prominence the next decade, first as the ornery Major Frank Burns in the 1970 antiwar comedy M*A*S*H, reuniting with Robert Altman, who’d previously cast him in 1967’s Countdown.—
Tim Grierson,
Rolling Stone,
16 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bilious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bilious. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
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