irritates

verb

present tense third-person singular of irritate
1
as in annoys
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts constant chatter irritated the student, who was trying to concentrate on a hard assignment

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in scratches
to make sore by continued rubbing new shoes usually irritate my feet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 irritates Daisy is caught so off guard that her first reaction is to laugh, which irritates Ben. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 28 Apr. 2026 If something irritates you, the Aries moon encourages you to speak up. — Usa Today, USA Today, 21 Feb. 2026 If someone is in your life long enough, they’re bound to do something that irritates you—and you’re bound to do something that irritates them. — Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 15 June 2026 Weed pollen typically irritates people in the late summer and early fall. — Seth Jacobson, wickedlocal.com, 5 Mar. 2026 The impish half-smile that irritates opponents eventually returns to his face, though. — Chris Smith, Vanity Fair, 11 May 2026 Castor Oil Castor oil irritates the digestive system of the moles and makes the soil less inviting to them. — Nadia Hassani, The Spruce, 7 Mar. 2026 There’s another distinctly New York habit that irritates Manville — at the end of the performances, theatergoers leap to their feat, not just to applaud, but to whip out their cellphones to record the curtain call. — Brent Lang, Variety, 16 Jan. 2026 Elsa’s inquisitive presence almost instantly irritates Amalia, as the latter refuses to simply acquiesce to her relentless quizzing. — Lé Baltar, IndieWire, 16 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for irritates
  1. annoys
  2. scratches
  3. bothers
  4. chafes
  5. persecutes
  6. excoriates
  7. bugs
  8. scrapes
Verb
  • What is the pettiest thing that annoys you during a race weekend?
    — Jeff Gluck, New York Times, 24 June 2026
  • One of the more common ways bear encounters escalate is when an off-leash dog runs toward a bear, annoys it, and then comes sprinting back to its owner with an angry predator in pursuit.
    — Amber Harding OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 June 2026
Definition of annoys
Verb
  • Food particles and microorganisms can become trapped in the nicks, grooves, and scratches on the board.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, The Spruce, 28 June 2026
  • Price's dog Chaos suffered extensive blood loss and several gashes and scratches from the bear attack.
    — Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 13 June 2026
Definition of scratches
Verb
  • What bothers me is the foot-dragging, the spinning in circles, the slow degradation of these characters into annoying stereotypes.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
  • What bothers me is the implication of a Labubu National Team full of these things.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 25 June 2026
Definition of bothers
Verb
  • The debut novel from this English professor and pioneering feminist follows Mira, a suburban homemaker who chafes against patriarchal society, divorces her husband, enrolls in graduate school, and becomes an outspoken advocate for women’s rights.
    — Michael Schaub, Oc Register, 25 June 2026
  • This new life chafes my husband more than me.
    — Zinzi Clemmons, Los Angeles Times, 8 June 2026
Definition of chafes
Verb
  • China, which jails human rights activists in Hong Kong, persecutes Uyghurs, has killed hundreds of thousands of Tibetans and has committed genocide against the Falun Gong, is on the UN Human Rights Council.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2026
  • In Russia, the civilian repressive apparatus persecutes the military, which leaps at every chance for revenge.
    — Stephen Kotkin, Foreign Affairs, 16 Dec. 2025
Definition of persecutes
Verb
  • Smullen’s campaign launched an anti-Constantino website that excoriates him for, among many other things, his past registration as a Democrat.
    — Michael Hill, Fortune, 12 June 2026
  • Woodcutters sets forth the musings of a narrator sitting in an armchair at a dinner party who excoriates the literary awards establishments of his native land (and by extension all lands that are host to a robust bourgeoisie).
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
Definition of excoriates
Verb
  • What really bugs me about this moment, and about the battle and its aftermath, is the lack of feeling.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
  • When traveling, the EPA suggests inspecting any room visitors will be staying in for the presence of bed bugs.
    — Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 20 Apr. 2026
Definition of bugs
Verb
  • Her older brother, 9-year-old Charlie, climbs across the nearby jungle gym at a Prairie Village playground as her younger brother, 3-year-old Will, scrapes a stick through the mulch.
    — Anna Spoerre, Kansas City Star, 18 June 2026
  • Every texture is an independent agent with its own membrane in the mix; percussion rubs and scrapes against your attention, while mutating synth patches burble in the periphery.
    — H.D. Angel, Pitchfork, 16 June 2026
Definition of scrapes

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Cite this Entry

“Irritates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/irritates. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of irritates for Spanish Speakers

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