irked 1 of 2

adjective

as in annoyed
subjected to and reacting with irritation irked drivers were honking and shouting at the cows in the road

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

irked

2 of 2

verb

past tense of irk
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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of irked
Verb
Every president since there have been broadcasters has had reason to be irked by them, both radio and television. — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 24 Aug. 2026 If customers have been irked about the thumb-twiddling wait or early closing hours, most aren’t complaining. — Michael Deeds, Idaho Statesman, 18 Aug. 2026 Baldur is more circumspect, irked at having temporarily lost his boat in the mishap, and unsettled by Helge’s teasing manner, which could be interpreted as either adversarial or flirtatious. — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 26 July 2026 The company behind the disk space analyzer TreeSize has irked some users by no longer offering support or updates for perpetual licenses beyond their maintenance period unless customers subscribe. — Scharon Harding, ArsTechnica, 21 July 2026 There were a lot of characters in Fred’s orbit on Sanford and Son, but no one irked him like Lamont’s fast-talking friend Rollo. — Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 17 July 2026 Back in April, word of Schwartz’s nomination irked some vaccine skeptics who were rising to prominence under Kennedy. — Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026 Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois seemed personally irked. — Tim Spiers, New York Times, 7 July 2026 In the months since his March promotion, Andreou has worked to release the Copilot super app, scaled back the ubiquitous Copilot icons that irked Windows users, and launched Copilot Cowork to compete with Anthropic’s highly popular Claude Cowork. — Sebastian Herrera, Fortune, 27 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irked
  1. annoyed
  2. bothered
  3. irritated
  4. bugged
  5. upset
  6. persecuted
  7. exasperated
  8. angry
Adjective
  • Bad, fine, and stressed are obvious candidates, but your favorite might be overwhelmed, annoyed, or tired.
    — Angela Haupt, Time, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Economists and the commentariat, playing the role of the annoyed parent, point out that over-all employment has been strong for a while.
    — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 28 July 2026
Definition of annoyed
Verb
  • Right-handed reliever Joel Peguero (left hamstring strain) will be shut down for the rest of the year due to a recurring hamstring strain that’s bothered him since spring training.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 22 Aug. 2026
  • Woolen’s reaching hands bothered Brown enough that, while fielding another slant, Brown lost his grip on the football, which popped into the air.
    — Brooks Kubena, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of bothered
Adjective
  • The 38-year-old photographer from Colchester, Essex — who has worn daily contact lenses for more than two decades — at first assumed his eye was irritated by sand and saltwater from surfing, per Kennedy News and Media.
    — Erin Clack, PEOPLE, 23 Aug. 2026
  • By the second day, the novelty wears off, and the two teams can get irritated at each other.
    — Zach Berman, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of irritated
Verb
  • The indictment revealed that prosecutors had bugged the Aisenbergs' home for three months after Sabrina's disappearance.
    — Curran Rastogi, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine, a law-enforcement agency known as NABU, had bugged Mindich’s apartment in Kyiv, and detectives picked up his conversations about Fire Point.
    — Simon Shuster, The Atlantic, 17 July 2026
Definition of bugged
Adjective
  • Common signs that your dog may be sensitive to something in their food can include frequent scratching, paw licking, gas, loose stools, occasional digestive upset, or changes in coat quality.
    — Matthew Kayser, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The thinking is that orbital data centers can leapfrog past some of the ground-level issues such as where to build them, and upset communities that don’t want to host data centers, despite their municipalities making deals for construction.
    — Amanda Gerut, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of upset
Verb
  • Many Marranos persecuted by the Inquisition did secretly maintain a Jewish identity.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Since mutants are often feared and persecuted, Professor Charles Xavier, one of the most powerful telepaths in the comics canon, opens a School for Gifted Youngsters as a safe haven for young wayward mutants.
    — Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 15 Aug. 2026
Definition of persecuted
Adjective
  • John Stewart’s exasperated adieu to his alien abductors doubles as a meta acknowledgement of Episode 2’s exposition-heavy plotting.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 23 Aug. 2026
  • These were voices—complaining, confiding, exasperated, distressed—that had not been heard before, as if the novel were a speaking tube cued to an underground rumble.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of exasperated
Adjective
  • But some of it is about the cultural change that people argue about, on their phones, with the other angry people that their algorithm has found for them.
    — David Weigel, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Pretendian hunters tend to be painted as aggressive or angry, which ultimately serves to undermine their claims.
    — Tommy Orange, Vulture, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of angry

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Cite this Entry

“Irked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irked. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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