as in angered
feeling or showing anger
our supervisor was rankled by all the unexpected delays and problems we ran into
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in stormed
to be excited or emotionally stirred up with anger
that kind of rude treatment from a young person makes me rankle
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in infuriated
to make angry
it rankles me when some schools can't even afford paper and pencils for the students
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rankled
Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
This rankled some, who felt Elliott’s typical, bustling self would inject the urgency Villa were lacking.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
DeGeneres’ career climb rankled Fulger, who was let go from the series, along with co-star Maggie Wheeler, when it was retooled after its first year on the air.
—Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2025
Some of Niccol's changes have rankled customers and baristas.
—Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 9 Sep. 2025
That experience had rankled in my soul ever since.
—Ben East, Outdoor Life, 28 Aug. 2025
Dobson's unflinching conservatism rankled some Republican leaders at the height of his influence.
—Jason Derose, NPR, 21 Aug. 2025
Having to spend three hours being poked and prodded and prevented from making phone calls rankled; Diamandis is an incorrigible multitasker.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
One part of Harris’ platform particularly rankled Sasse.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2024
Verb
But while Loeb has often encouraged scientists to have an open mind about extraterrestrials, his theories and research have often rankled other astrophysicists in the field, who push back on some of his bolder claims.
—Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 2 Oct. 2025
This rankled some, who felt Elliott’s typical, bustling self would inject the urgency Villa were lacking.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 29 Sep. 2025
DeGeneres’ career climb rankled Fulger, who was let go from the series, along with co-star Maggie Wheeler, when it was retooled after its first year on the air.
—Rob Picheta, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2025
Some of Niccol's changes have rankled customers and baristas.
—Amelia Lucas, CNBC, 9 Sep. 2025
That experience had rankled in my soul ever since.
—Ben East, Outdoor Life, 28 Aug. 2025
Dobson's unflinching conservatism rankled some Republican leaders at the height of his influence.
—Jason Derose, NPR, 21 Aug. 2025
Having to spend three hours being poked and prodded and prevented from making phone calls rankled; Diamandis is an incorrigible multitasker.
—Tad Friend, New Yorker, 4 Aug. 2025
One part of Harris’ platform particularly rankled Sasse.
—Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rankled
Adjective
-
Soon, the faces of the angered New York City citizens around her soften.—
Angelica Jade Bastién,
Vulture,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Junior tight end Bennett Jordan outjumped two defenders, somehow caught it, and the Mountain Brook team stormed the end zone.—
Grace Raynor,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
-
The Tigers-Guardians series brings plenty of storylines after Cleveland stormed back to take the division.—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The proposal has run into challenges, including far-right ministers in Israel being infuriated that the plan would let Palestinians stay in Gaza and not forcibly displaced.—
Brittney Melton,
NPR,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The trip infuriated China, which tells other countries to avoid official engagements with Taiwan, and triggered massive Chinese military exercises in waters and airspace around the island.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Mistaken as the murderer, Mary is stoned and buried alive in a shallow grave by the enraged townspeople.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
17 Sep. 2025
-
The defense attorney, Michael Caesar, told jurors that Bragg became enraged after Gladney outed him as a gay man, and sought revenge.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Unlike most apple pie recipes, this one calls for the apples to be steamed in a steamer basket.—
Phoebe Evans,
Southern Living,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Sean Longstaff steamed in to give Adams a shove.—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In practice, Musk bowed to authoritarian governments or banned critical journalists when their reporting annoyed him.—
Jacob Silverman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Christian is annoyed by Max’s temporary tyranny and overall seems … normal.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Anyone proposing to offer a master class on changing the world for the better, without becoming negative, cynical, angry or narrow-minded in the process, could model their advice on the life and work of pioneering animal behavior scholar Jane Goodall.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
2 Oct. 2025
-
An angry cowboy named Jake once slammed a guest’s door and locked it.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Total terror raged for a month or more.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
30 Sep. 2025
-
The Barbz quickly worked to shut that notion down, but the debate raged on between the two fanbases.—
Regina Cho,
VIBE.com,
26 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rankled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rankled. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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