as in irritability
readiness to show annoyance or impatience
I do not appreciate your petulance and eagerness to argue
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Recent Examples of petulance
Jimmy Butler did not have to consider the fallout of petulance because he already was known as petulant.
—
Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 1 Aug. 2025
The synths sound terrible now, and the petulance is creeping in, which does him no favors.
—Christopher Bonanos, Vulture, 18 July 2025
For all his bombast online, for instance, Marcus has said that today’s chatbots are a legitimate breakthrough, just far from the breakthrough; for all of Altman’s petulance, OpenAI’s latest large reasoning models rely on new approaches not so dissimilar from Marcus’s own, decades-old ideas.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 8 July 2025
That’s not true, of course, just like Trump’s claims about the media were just thin cover for his petulance.
—Chris Brennan, USA Today, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for petulance
Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 1 Aug. 2025
The synths sound terrible now, and the petulance is creeping in, which does him no favors.
—Christopher Bonanos, Vulture, 18 July 2025
For all his bombast online, for instance, Marcus has said that today’s chatbots are a legitimate breakthrough, just far from the breakthrough; for all of Altman’s petulance, OpenAI’s latest large reasoning models rely on new approaches not so dissimilar from Marcus’s own, decades-old ideas.
—Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 8 July 2025
That’s not true, of course, just like Trump’s claims about the media were just thin cover for his petulance.
—Chris Brennan, USA Today, 27 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for petulance
Recent Examples of Synonyms for petulance
Noun
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In addition to depression, anxiety, panic attacks at night, and irritability may also occur.—
Brandon Peters,
Verywell Health,
29 Oct. 2025
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Sleep deprivation also disrupts mood regulation, often leading to anxiety, irritability or depression.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In 2014, after Russia seized Crimea, President Obama imposed sanctions on the individuals and groups responsible for the aggression.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
31 Oct. 2025
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Tehran says these attacks confirm that Washington is pursuing aggression rather than diplomacy.—
Amir Daftari,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Petulance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/petulance. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.
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