as in petulant
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Recent Examples of stroppy
She’s matched wonderfully by Cooke, who leans into her actual Manchester accent to give Cherry a stroppy, sarcastic bent and whose body looks absolutely banging wrapped in an array of oxblood, maroon, and cerise minidresses.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2025
The team’s cohesion and ability to handle adversity are worlds apart from the stroppy exits that defined Mauricio Pochettino’s time managing a team of Galacticos.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
Yet the Brazilian proceeded to show how Pereira’s faith was misplaced, first with a stroppy performance at Chelsea that prompted his head coach to publicly criticise his body language and then with his second violent meltdown of the season, against Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez in the FA Cup.
—Steve Madeley, New York Times, 28 May 2025
Ramaswamy stole a page from Trump’s 2016 playbook, emerging as a stroppy candidate challenging the status quo of Washington.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2023
Madison makes for a peculiar heroine; her performance as a realistically stroppy adolescent, in possession of a weariness and cynicism far beyond her years, recalls Karen Kilgariff playing a child in an improv scene.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 7 Oct. 2022
But even if Brexit reflects Britain’s carefree pensioners—and some evidence suggests that despite being older, Brexit voters were stroppier than average—there is little sign of such an age effect elsewhere.
—The Economist, 11 July 2019
Indeed, a video on AS' website shows the marksman getting extremely stroppy when he is told to conduct some acceleration drills alone while his fellow players get on with another session.
—SI.com, 12 Oct. 2017
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 10 Sep. 2025
The team’s cohesion and ability to handle adversity are worlds apart from the stroppy exits that defined Mauricio Pochettino’s time managing a team of Galacticos.
—Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
Yet the Brazilian proceeded to show how Pereira’s faith was misplaced, first with a stroppy performance at Chelsea that prompted his head coach to publicly criticise his body language and then with his second violent meltdown of the season, against Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez in the FA Cup.
—Steve Madeley, New York Times, 28 May 2025
Ramaswamy stole a page from Trump’s 2016 playbook, emerging as a stroppy candidate challenging the status quo of Washington.
—Lorraine Ali, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2023
Madison makes for a peculiar heroine; her performance as a realistically stroppy adolescent, in possession of a weariness and cynicism far beyond her years, recalls Karen Kilgariff playing a child in an improv scene.
—Declan Gallagher, EW.com, 7 Oct. 2022
But even if Brexit reflects Britain’s carefree pensioners—and some evidence suggests that despite being older, Brexit voters were stroppier than average—there is little sign of such an age effect elsewhere.
—The Economist, 11 July 2019
Indeed, a video on AS' website shows the marksman getting extremely stroppy when he is told to conduct some acceleration drills alone while his fellow players get on with another session.
—SI.com, 12 Oct. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stroppy
Adjective
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Heroine Elizabeth is famous for her own refusals, but she’s actually first caught in the middle of two acts of petulant male defiance.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
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That her response was aggressive, defensive and petulant is even better.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
24 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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However, the Moon is at odds with Mars, encouraging grumpy and irritable reactions.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
15 Oct. 2025
-
However, such symptoms are hard to attribute to vaccines because infants can be irritable or fussy regardless of vaccination.—
Aria Bendix,
NBC news,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But, wishes aside, Patterson was cast as Danes, the grumpy but kindhearted diner owner at the heart of the show’s romance between his character and Lauren Graham’s Lorelai Gilmore.—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
18 Oct. 2025
-
However, the Moon is at odds with Mars, encouraging grumpy and irritable reactions.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Shot in Calgary, the show is from Kurt Sutter but the irascible writer-producer stepped away from the drama in October of 2024.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
1 Oct. 2025
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If the lead-up to Benfica’s visit, and even the game itself, had the feel of a reunion at times, there were still flashes of the irascible Mourinho of old.—
Stuart James,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Townsend will play Norm Stinson, an excellent (and grouchy) veteran basketball coach who knows how to get the best out of his teams, but not always how to communicate.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
25 Sep. 2025
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Leading up to kickoff of Belichick’s debut at Chapel Hill, college football, this community and certainly the TV networks were thrilled with the prospect of this grouchy old man turning an irrelevant football team into something worth watching.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Instead, Helen is allowed to be irritable and anti-social, chain-smoking and snappish, without the filmmaker casting judgment.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
2 Sep. 2025
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Harriette Cole: My twins are getting snappish over college acceptance Asking Eric: A cemetery guard ruined my father’s funeral, and that was just the start This includes stating your belief that your explanations may not be believed.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
7 May 2025
Adjective
-
While grunge seemed peevish, grim, defeatist, and dour—and extended the kind of us-vs.-them culture most famously centered by the indie rock of the ’80s and ’90s, Oasis was celebratory, communal, and democratic while exploring themes of alienation, escape, and fantasies of triumph.—
Corey Seymour,
Vogue,
28 July 2025
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Thousands of people — displaced by disaster, their past lives gone up in smoke — are hostage to the whims of a peevish president who always puts his feelings first and cares nothing for the greater good.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
22 June 2025
Adjective
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The tale she’s lived to tell emerges, for all its crotchety complaints, from a place of unerring loyalty.—
Mark Leibovich,
The Atlantic,
8 Oct. 2025
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As the Platinum Chalice status holder, Adomian adopts an old man’s slow gait and crotchety American geriatric voice to yet another ovation.—
John Roy,
Vulture,
8 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stroppy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stroppy. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
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