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DictionarytestyEasily irritated
adjective

testy

TES-tee/ˈtesti/

Easily annoyed or impatient.

I get testy when people interrupt me during a meeting.

A middle-aged white office worker impatiently frowns and taps fingers while a colleague searches a drawer, irritated rather than violent, no text.
Etymology
testyOld Frenchstubborn, headstrong

The ancestor testu meant “headstrong,” built on the word for “head.” English first used testy for rash or impetuous boldness before the sense shifted to being easily irritated.

In context

Mel Robbins29:03
to her what do you is there a way to respond when someone else is throwing a fit or is being disrespectful you know what I mean like somebody's getting testy at the airport
How To Handle Difficult People & Take Back Your Peace and Power

More examples

  • He's a little testy before his morning coffee.
  • Her testy reply makes me hesitate to ask another question.
  • The longer we wait, the testier everyone gets.

Forms

testy · testier · testiest

testily adverb — In an annoyed or impatient manner.

testiness noun — The tendency to become easily annoyed.

Similar words

irritable
Describes readiness to become annoyed, without necessarily showing impatience.
impatient
Emphasizes difficulty tolerating delays or obstacles rather than general irritability.