irked 1 of 2

irked

2 of 2

verb

past tense of irk

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
But Trinity's focus on its bottom line also irked many Republicans, including Mantello, who was the City Council president at the time. Noam Levey, NPR, 1 Sep. 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irked
Adjective
  • Issa acts on that notion by encouraging a threesome between herself, Paul Baker, and Anton, who has spent much of the episode getting increasingly annoyed about being left out of everyone else’s scheming.
    Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Long enough for the audience to feel annoyed and become squeamish.
    Alex Jovanovich, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • But Covid-19 layoffs aside, the San Francisco company hasn’t bothered to tidy up along the way, its chief executive says.
    Andrew Nusca, Fortune, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Never even bothered to deny any of the accusations that would eventually lead to Wednesday’s stunning NBA ruling against the LA Clippers in this landmark salary cap circumvention case.
    Sam Amick, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Adjective
  • Nice people may of course become irritated, disappointed, jealous, or defensive, since niceness does not require sainthood.
    Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Soto, looking irritated, reaches out and slaps him upside the head.
    Sylvia Varnham O’Regan, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026
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
Adjective
  • An upset victory in Alaska for Democrats would be a massive step toward achieving that goal.
    Joey Garrison, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Clancy appeared upset during the sidebar but returned to the defense table with a stoic expression.
    Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 3 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Many see Trump as the only president to defend Nigerian Christians; his administration claims they are being persecuted by Islamist groups.
    Harriet Marsden, TheWeek, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Fernanda risked her life not only to protect works of art during the war, but also to help politically persecuted people escape the Fascist regime.
    Roberto Prieto, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026
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
Adjective
  • Much of the work is also focused on building guardrails to protect clients from lawsuits — coming from business partners, local officials, or angry neighbors — in an industry that has an increasingly visible target on its back.
    Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Though nothing about the current situation is ideal, there’s no clear way to hop off without ensuring certain doom at the hands of a large, angry cat.
    Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 3 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Irked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irked. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

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