as in irritable
easily offended
a morose and tetchy resident of a nursing home
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tetchy
Hallmarks of the best Halloween travel destinations usually entail a moody fall landscape, local legends that involve a tetchy ghost, vampire, or other variety of ominous being, and themed activities like pumpkin patches and cemetery tours.
—
Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 18 Oct. 2025
Reynolds is a tetchy tyrant, who, enabled by his sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), has embraced a need to have things just so as a means of warding off vulnerability.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
Or the public’s general distaste for being confronted with tetchy societal issues will still prevail; doom-scrolling should be done on one’s phone at home, not out in the world among other people.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
The venerable brand has, for well over a century, been a producer of debonair, distinctly British, sport/luxury cars, known mainly for startling good looks and an attitude that is more sophisticated and less tetchy than its Italian rivals.
—Brett Berk, Robb Report, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tetchy
Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 18 Oct. 2025
Reynolds is a tetchy tyrant, who, enabled by his sister, Cyril (Lesley Manville), has embraced a need to have things just so as a means of warding off vulnerability.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 25 Sep. 2025
Or the public’s general distaste for being confronted with tetchy societal issues will still prevail; doom-scrolling should be done on one’s phone at home, not out in the world among other people.
—Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
The venerable brand has, for well over a century, been a producer of debonair, distinctly British, sport/luxury cars, known mainly for startling good looks and an attitude that is more sophisticated and less tetchy than its Italian rivals.
—Brett Berk, Robb Report, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tetchy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tetchy
Adjective
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Perhaps through feeling more irritable, more anxious, or wanting to isolate.—
Joy Harden Bradford,
AJC.com,
2 Apr. 2026
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Had my symptoms maybe been put down to irritable bowel, for example, that could’ve been ongoing and ongoing and ongoing for a much longer period of time.—
Gina Kalsi,
PEOPLE,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The ability to acquire land in fee simple is essential and, in many cases, the most effective and expedient way to protect sensitive landscapes, especially in rapidly developing areas.—
Susan Carr,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Apr. 2026
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Eating large amounts or consuming them on an empty stomach may increase the likelihood of discomfort in sensitive individuals.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Eleven hours into this 15-hour shift, most of the attending’s best qualities — his pragmatic approach to medicine, his encouragement of young colleagues, his ability to roll with unexpected challenges — have curdled into huffy dismissiveness and defensive blind spots.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
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He is seen as favoring Christine Lagarde, head of the European Central Bank, to take over WEF, though her huffy exit this year from a dinner stacked with US government officials may make things awkward.—
semafor.com,
semafor.com,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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But then Johnson pivoted to corruption, a touchy subject in Mexico.—
Steve Fisher,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
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Xinjiang has long been a touchy issue in neighboring Kazakhstan, a Central Asian country of 20 million people that relies on China as a major trading partner.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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There’s a ticklish elusiveness to the portraits of Blume’s husbands in the book, and to those of her kids, Randy and Larry, as well.—
Katy Waldman,
New Yorker,
18 Mar. 2026
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Transporting the patient 12 miles to Hartford Hospital would be ticklish.—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
1 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tetchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tetchy. Accessed 29 Apr. 2026.
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