petulance

noun

pet·​u·​lance ˈpe-chə-lən(t)s 

: the quality or state of being petulant : peevishness

Synonyms

• biliousness
• choler
• crankiness
• crossness
• crotchetiness
• grouchiness
• grumpiness
• huffiness
• irascibility
• irascibleness
• irritability
• irritableness
• peevishness
• perverseness
• perversity
• pettishness
• testiness
• waspishness

Examples of petulance in a Sentence

I do not appreciate your petulance and eagerness to argue.

Recent Examples on the Web

And Monday night’s show of frustration and occasional petulance at Stamford Bridge was precisely the kind of example Pereira does not need from a player supposed to set an example for others to follow. —Steve Madeley, The Athletic, 21 Jan. 2025

Oh, the petulance, the bristling, the gnashing of teeth. —Joe Soucheray, Twin Cities, 18 Jan. 2025

The fourth album by these Philadelphia punks is a pristine work in the Sleater-Kinney tradition of petulance: Noise and vulnerability surge in exquisite counterpoint; guitars crunch as satisfyingly as an autumn leaf under one’s heel. —Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Dec. 2024

The sense of entitlement and petulance on display is staggering. —Jeffrey Blehar, National Review, 13 Dec. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1535, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

petulance

noun

pet·​u·​lance ˈpech-ə-lən(t)s 

: the quality or state of being petulant