1
as in annoys
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts
constant chatter irritated the student, who was trying to concentrate on a hard assignment
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of irritates
If someone is in your life long enough, they’re bound to do something that irritates you—and you’re bound to do something that irritates them.
—
Olga Khazan,
The Atlantic,
15 June 2026
Elsa’s inquisitive presence almost instantly irritates Amalia, as the latter refuses to simply acquiesce to her relentless quizzing.
—
Lé Baltar,
IndieWire,
16 May 2026
The impish half-smile that irritates opponents eventually returns to his face, though.
—
Chris Smith,
Vanity Fair,
11 May 2026
Daisy is caught so off guard that her first reaction is to laugh, which irritates Ben.
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
28 Apr. 2026
Castor Oil Castor oil irritates the digestive system of the moles and makes the soil less inviting to them.
—
Nadia Hassani,
The Spruce,
7 Mar. 2026
Weed pollen typically irritates people in the late summer and early fall.
—
Seth Jacobson,
wickedlocal.com,
5 Mar. 2026
If something irritates you, the Aries moon encourages you to speak up.
—
Usa Today,
USA Today,
21 Feb. 2026
There’s another distinctly New York habit that irritates Manville — at the end of the performances, theatergoers leap to their feat, not just to applaud, but to whip out their cellphones to record the curtain call.
—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
16 Jan. 2026
Olga Khazan,
The Atlantic,
15 June 2026
Elsa’s inquisitive presence almost instantly irritates Amalia, as the latter refuses to simply acquiesce to her relentless quizzing.
—
Lé Baltar,
IndieWire,
16 May 2026
The impish half-smile that irritates opponents eventually returns to his face, though.
—
Chris Smith,
Vanity Fair,
11 May 2026
Daisy is caught so off guard that her first reaction is to laugh, which irritates Ben.
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
28 Apr. 2026
Castor Oil Castor oil irritates the digestive system of the moles and makes the soil less inviting to them.
—
Nadia Hassani,
The Spruce,
7 Mar. 2026
Weed pollen typically irritates people in the late summer and early fall.
—
Seth Jacobson,
wickedlocal.com,
5 Mar. 2026
If something irritates you, the Aries moon encourages you to speak up.
—
Usa Today,
USA Today,
21 Feb. 2026
There’s another distinctly New York habit that irritates Manville — at the end of the performances, theatergoers leap to their feat, not just to applaud, but to whip out their cellphones to record the curtain call.
—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
16 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irritates
Verb
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What is the pettiest thing that annoys you during a race weekend?
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One of the more common ways bear encounters escalate is when an off-leash dog runs toward a bear, annoys it, and then comes sprinting back to its owner with an angry predator in pursuit.
Verb
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Price's dog Chaos suffered extensive blood loss and several gashes and scratches from the bear attack.
-
Officers noted in the affidavit that the girlfriend’s injuries didn’t quite match her claims, observing a small mark on her neck, scratches on her arm and a small cut on her hand.
Verb
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Oh, and more often than not, nobody bothers to check whether the change intervention actually worked, or whether leaders improve their performance after all!
-
The government no longer even bothers to disguise itself as a democracy.
Verb
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This new life chafes my husband more than me.
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What feels like sci-fi resolves into a Realist worker portrait as a technological fantasy of efficiency chafes against the fleshy, earthly physical world.
Verb
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China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.
-
In Russia, the civilian repressive apparatus persecutes the military, which leaps at every chance for revenge.
Verb
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Smullen’s campaign launched an anti-Constantino website that excoriates him for, among many other things, his past registration as a Democrat.
-
Woodcutters sets forth the musings of a narrator sitting in an armchair at a dinner party who excoriates the literary awards establishments of his native land (and by extension all lands that are host to a robust bourgeoisie).
Verb
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When traveling, the EPA suggests inspecting any room visitors will be staying in for the presence of bed bugs.
-
As an existing subdivision — 99% of it vacant — Azure Vista offered hundreds of buildable vacant lots populated only by red ants, quail and Groucho Marx bugs.
Verb
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Her older brother, 9-year-old Charlie, climbs across the nearby jungle gym at a Prairie Village playground as her younger brother, 3-year-old Will, scrapes a stick through the mulch.
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Every texture is an independent agent with its own membrane in the mix; percussion rubs and scrapes against your attention, while mutating synth patches burble in the periphery.
Cite this Entry
“Irritates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irritates. Accessed 27 Jun. 2026.
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