splenetic

adjective

spli-ˈne-tik How to pronounce splenetic (audio)
Definition of spleneticnext
as in irritable
having or showing a habitually bad temper the newspaper publisher's splenetic editorials often struck fear into local politicians

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 splenetic Still, the internet nurtures these Hobbesian, splenetic views. — Annie Lowrey, The Atlantic, 24 May 2026 Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views. — Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022 Moscow’s splenetic response to the European visit underscored Putin’s anger over Ukraine’s tightening bonds with Europe. — Laura Kingstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2022 In Rithy Panh’s frenetic, splenetic new hybrid essay film, everything will most assuredly not be OK. — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 12 Feb. 2022 Despite the politicians’ splenetic arguments all week, Macron’s plan passed the National Assembly by a vote of 214 to 93. — Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 6 Jan. 2022 Kalder proposes Lenin as the originator of the modern totalitarian style in prose, adopting Marx’s splenetic polemical tone for the purposes of Communist revolution. — Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splenetic
  1. irritable
  2. angry
  3. bilious
  4. dyspeptic
  5. cantankerous
  6. disagreeable
  7. ornery
  8. acid
Adjective
  • Murray says her own experience has made her more understanding when female colleagues seem more tired or irritable than usual, particularly when the behavior is out of character.
    — Jo Ann Liguori, Flow Space, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Could be because for much of the running time, Abrams’ Jay Gardiner is up against what looks like a very large irritable sphincter.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of irritable
Adjective
  • Thus a group of angry Roman Catholics, led by Robert Catesby, began plotting a way to topple the Protestant government.
    — Lucia Barnum, Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Oct. 2026
  • The Packers come off an angry loss while the Panthers were humiliated on Sunday.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of angry
Adjective
  • Ready to Wear, the bilious bomb of a film in which Robert Altman took aim at the fashion industry with an elephant gun—and missed.
    — Charles Gandee, Vogue, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Look the steady coarsening of American civic and political culture and the ways in which the once-outrageous—the bilious, hateful rhetoric and the creeping authoritarianism—have become almost ordinary.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 July 2026
Definition of bilious
Adjective
  • Once upon a time, the idea that the world was growing stupider was mostly confined to the realm of dyspeptic reactionary polemic.
    — James Marriott, Washington Post, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Govan might prevail on Lucas to join as well, as an idiosyncratic and dyspeptic if public-minded voice.
    — Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of dyspeptic
Adjective
  • The flashback structure doesn’t serve much of a purpose except to delay the audience’s complete endorsement of a character who, though appropriately cantankerous, is unambiguously a hero and nice guy.
    — Todd Gilchrist, Variety, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Lyons recalled how Meyer and Davis transformed her own cantankerous vision — mushrooms beside saddles, faucets beside disco balls, moldings beside dog doors — into a cohesive design language.
    — Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of cantankerous
Adjective
  • Mistaking being disagreeable with the act of disagreeing is common - especially in unsafe psychological workplaces.
    — Kate Wieczorek, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • There are also a lot of people who have never dreamed of being disagreeable in public, much less considered joining a raucous social movement.
    — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 12 June 2026
Definition of disagreeable
Adjective
  • White and Madison are sort of like Tom Cruise and Demi Moore, building a mountain of evidence against the company, while Strong is playing an ornery witness a la Jack Nicholson.
    — Marcus Jones, IndieWire, 7 Oct. 2026
  • But however janky, the system just about works for the ornery menfolk muddling their way through it, with their many beefs mostly resolved with a bottle of lethally alcoholic local tipple chacha, or a punch to the face, or both.
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of ornery
Adjective
  • They are accompanied by their keeper, a man with dwarfism, quite probably an acid joke at his expense.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Whatever your pleasure, there’s no wrong way to take an acid trip.
    — Emily Saladino, Bon Appetit Magazine, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of acid

Browse Nearby Words

splendors
splenetic
splice
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Cite this Entry

“Splenetic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splenetic. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

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