as in annoyed
subjected to and reacting with irritation
irked drivers were honking and shouting at the cows in the road
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in bothered
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts
she irked her friend by chewing her gum loudly during the movie
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of irked
Megan O’Matz, ProPublica, 18 Mar. 2026
But what irked me the most was the shockingly sweet tomato sauce.
—Kansas City Star, 4 Mar. 2026
King in recent weeks had appeared irked by scrutiny being paid to CBS News, which has generated more attention since Weiss, an opinion journalist with little experience managing a mainstream media operation, joined last year.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 4 Mar. 2026
In one story, the king, Hiranyakashipu, ordered everyone in his kingdom to worship him and was irked when his own son Prahlad, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, disobeyed his command.
—ABC News, 3 Mar. 2026
The media company’s positioning has already irked some of its existing stars.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 23 Feb. 2026
Members of Neighbors Against Fear and Rush-hour Resistance Rallies who have protested at the ICE field office in Phoenix have irked some of the organizers with Borderlands Resource Initiative and People First Project.
—Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 10 Feb. 2026
Free-speech civil-society groups on the right and the left were irked by Kuhl’s decision.
—Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
Emery had been irked, in particular, by a diagonal pass that went out of play for a throw-in.
—James Pearce, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
Verb
Alfonso’s familial advantage has irked some Wisconsin Republicans who don’t want the newcomer to glide into such an important position.
—Megan O’Matz, ProPublica, 18 Mar. 2026
But what irked me the most was the shockingly sweet tomato sauce.
—Kansas City Star, 4 Mar. 2026
King in recent weeks had appeared irked by scrutiny being paid to CBS News, which has generated more attention since Weiss, an opinion journalist with little experience managing a mainstream media operation, joined last year.
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 4 Mar. 2026
In one story, the king, Hiranyakashipu, ordered everyone in his kingdom to worship him and was irked when his own son Prahlad, a devotee of Lord Vishnu, disobeyed his command.
—ABC News, 3 Mar. 2026
The media company’s positioning has already irked some of its existing stars.
—Max Tani, semafor.com, 23 Feb. 2026
Members of Neighbors Against Fear and Rush-hour Resistance Rallies who have protested at the ICE field office in Phoenix have irked some of the organizers with Borderlands Resource Initiative and People First Project.
—Taylor Seely, AZCentral.com, 10 Feb. 2026
Free-speech civil-society groups on the right and the left were irked by Kuhl’s decision.
—Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 10 Feb. 2026
Emery had been irked, in particular, by a diagonal pass that went out of play for a throw-in.
—James Pearce, New York Times, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irked
Adjective
-
Just not as annoyed as his fan base, which hasn’t celebrated a title in four decades.—
Ian O'Connor,
New York Times,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Then gets annoyed when people ask him about it.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Korda was bothered by back pain starting in the second set, but played through the pain.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2026
-
This might make observers wonder why Lee even bothered to introduce the measure.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
23 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The area may be slightly swollen, red, itchy and irritated.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Both ingredients blanket dry, irritated skin and deeply restore moisture for that signature K-beauty glass-skin glow.—
Lily Wohlner,
Allure,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Three people told the Washington Examiner that Scott had become paranoid that Lewandowski was spying on him through his work phone and had bugged his office.—
Anna Giaritelli,
The Washington Examiner,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Underwood went on The Bachelor as a straight man, made a connection with Randolph, broke up with her, bugged her car, and then was hit with a restraining order.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Virginia made one last push, cutting TCU’s lead to 65-55, but the Horned Frogs quickly delivered the knockout blow as Miles knocked down a 3 and Suarez hit sophomore center Clara Silva for a layup to end Virginia’s hopes of another upset.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Mar. 2026
-
In the video of the altercation, which was broken into clips and cross-posted across social media platforms, Peters and the woman are hanging out when Lentz arrives, upset.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
An immigration judge has previously found that she would be persecuted by the Israeli government if she was removed there.—
Kristie Keleshian,
CBS News,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Some had been granted the opportunity to stay after proving to immigration judges that they would probably be persecuted if returned to their homeland.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
After the Canadiens’ loss to the Sharks on Saturday, Lane Hutson was somewhat exasperated that issues the Canadiens have talked about for months keep coming up.—
Arpon Basu,
New York Times,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Documentarian Geeta Gandbhir retraces this slow-moving tragedy through the body camera footage of the exasperated officers who know that the caller, not the children, is the problem.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
That was the result of angry partisans taking seriously Trump’s bogus election-fraud claims.—
Steven Greenhut,
Oc Register,
27 Mar. 2026
-
House Republicans are angry that the bill passed early Friday by the Senate does not fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol.—
Lisa Mascaro,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Irked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irked. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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