Dictionary

testy en · ADJ

Pronunciation

• (Southern-England) audio
• /ˈtɛsti/

Etymology

Middle English testif (“headstrong”), from Old French testu, from teste (“head”) + -u. Compare modern French tête (“head”), têtu (“stubborn”).

Meanings

1. Easily annoyed, irritable.
2. Marked by impatience or ill humor.
   • Otherwise, we could end up with a repeat of what happened with social media companies after the 2016 election — a collision of Silicon Valley power and Washington ignorance, which resulted in nothing but gridlock and testy hearings. 2022 August 24, Kevin Roose, “We Need to Talk About How Good A.I. Is Getting”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
   • He made testy remarks.

Forms

Deriveds

testiness · untesty · testily

Relateds

heady · teston

Synonyms

tetchy · touchy

Translations (12)

mi whanewhane (irritable) · ru раздражи́тельный (irritable) · bg сприхав (irritable) · cs nedůtklivý (irritable) · bg раздразнителен (irritable) · pt irritadiço (irritable) · ru вспыльчивый (irritable) · de reizbar (irritable) · cs popudlivý (irritable) · mi kiriweti (irritable) · sv retlig (irritable) · pt irascível (irritable)