as in irritating
causing annoyance
for some air travelers, the most rankling aspect of the security measures seems to be the restrictions regarding carry-on baggage
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in raging
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 angering
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rankling
Adjective
-
The Panthers’ illuminating and irritating game defined their full identity.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
10 June 2025 -
Absences through injury have been an irritating constant throughout Welbeck’s career.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
29 May 2025
Verb
-
Then the truck flipped over, sending the workers into the raging water.—
Travis Loller,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Dec. 2024
-
Here is the list of fighters that gained immortality as a result of this raging inferno.—
Interesting Engineering,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Dec. 2024
Verb
-
The prequel will introduce his family and girlfriend and the events that led up to his victory, notorious for angering the Capitol elite.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA TODAY,
12 Mar. 2025
-
Reports suggest that some Republican lawmakers are frustrated with Musk’s bluster and that the DOGE approach to slashing the federal bureaucracy is angering constituents and making lawmakers less popular in their districts.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Mow At Convenient Times There's nothing quite as annoying as enjoying a peaceful slumber on Saturday morning, only to wake up to the sound of a roaring lawn mower.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
8 June 2025
-
There’s nothing more annoying than a show about waiting for something to happen.—
Daniel D'Addario,
Variety,
6 June 2025
Adjective
-
However, managing their ripeness can be a frustrating endeavor.—
Maryal Miller Carter,
USA Today,
13 June 2025
-
This year’s mayoral race has so far been a strange, frustrating exercise.—
Eric Lach,
New Yorker,
13 June 2025
Verb
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The company built a retail and residential complex around the county’s Coconut Grove Metrorail station, and Martin also is pitching an incinerator site in western Miami-Dade as an alternative to the Levine Cava plan to rebuild the trash-burning facility in Doral.—
Douglas Hanks,
Miami Herald,
4 Jan. 2025
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President Biden awarded the coveted Medal of Valor on Friday to a pair of heroic FDNY firefighters who ignored intense flames and selflessly raced into danger to save desperate New Yorkers who were trapped in burning buildings.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
3 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The withdrawn teen obsessively draws dark spiders in class and shows a disturbing fixation on news reports of school shootings.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
6 June 2025
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His disturbing legacy drew the attention of filmmaker and former HBO executive Kary Antholis, who had followed the case for decades.—
JP Mangalindan,
Time,
4 June 2025
Verb
-
Coursing through all of these elements is a seething anger at authoritarianism.—
Glenn Whipp,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Dec. 2024
-
Cox and his team were brought in by a handful of wealthy Colorado ranch owners who were still seething over the ballot measure to introduce wolves that passed in 2020 by less than one percent.—
Chris Dorsey,
Forbes,
18 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Rankling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rankling. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
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