as in irritable
having or showing a habitually bad temper
the newspaper publisher's splenetic editorials often struck fear into local politicians
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Recent Examples of splenetic
And while there is enough splenetic wit and manic detail to generate obsessive fandom (entire sections of Web sites are dedicated to deciphering just what Kenny is mumbling), subjects like alien abduction, genetic engineering, and Kathie Lee are hardly original targets for satire.
—
Chris Norris, SPIN, 13 Aug. 2022
Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views.
—Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022
Moscow’s splenetic response to the European visit underscored Putin’s anger over Ukraine’s tightening bonds with Europe.
—Laura Kingstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2022
In Rithy Panh’s frenetic, splenetic new hybrid essay film, everything will most assuredly not be OK.
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 12 Feb. 2022
Despite the politicians’ splenetic arguments all week, Macron’s plan passed the National Assembly by a vote of 214 to 93.
—Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 6 Jan. 2022
In the end, the IRA’s menagerie of false personas and fusillades of splenetic memes were arguably more effective at garnering sensationalistic headlines than shifting public opinion.
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 May 2020
Parlá is loose with his fields of color, but never splenetic.
—Jon Caramanica, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2020
Kalder proposes Lenin as the originator of the modern totalitarian style in prose, adopting Marx’s splenetic polemical tone for the purposes of Communist revolution.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2019
Chris Norris, SPIN, 13 Aug. 2022
Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views.
—Sarah Lyall, New York Times, 17 Sep. 2022
Moscow’s splenetic response to the European visit underscored Putin’s anger over Ukraine’s tightening bonds with Europe.
—Laura Kingstaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2022
In Rithy Panh’s frenetic, splenetic new hybrid essay film, everything will most assuredly not be OK.
—Jessica Kiang, Variety, 12 Feb. 2022
Despite the politicians’ splenetic arguments all week, Macron’s plan passed the National Assembly by a vote of 214 to 93.
—Vivienne Walt, Fortune, 6 Jan. 2022
In the end, the IRA’s menagerie of false personas and fusillades of splenetic memes were arguably more effective at garnering sensationalistic headlines than shifting public opinion.
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 11 May 2020
Parlá is loose with his fields of color, but never splenetic.
—Jon Caramanica, New York Times, 8 Mar. 2020
Kalder proposes Lenin as the originator of the modern totalitarian style in prose, adopting Marx’s splenetic polemical tone for the purposes of Communist revolution.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 16 Dec. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for splenetic
Adjective
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Strong winds also may have North Texans feeling more irritable, which scientists blame on there being too many positive ions in the air.—
Brayden Garcia,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
20 Mar. 2025
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Signs of overextension burnout include feeling emotionally drained, becoming irritable and struggling to focus—all of which can affect both your work and personal life.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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People who were paying close attention to certain corners of the internet saw this reality coming more than a decade ago in Gamergate, in which an angry online mob waged a virulent harassment campaign against women and diversity in the video game industry.—
Harmeet Kaur,
CNN,
23 Mar. 2025
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Republican members meet angry crowds The vast majority of Republican lawmakers have cheered on the changes to the federal government spearheaded by Trump's advisor, billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, under the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) project.—
Riley Beggin,
USA TODAY,
22 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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That pleasurable little paradox can be traced as far back as the 1952 classic melodrama The Bad and the Beautiful, or as recently as 2022's bilious Babylon.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
26 Mar. 2025
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In the Nineties, the report became a staple in the bilious feedstock of right-wing militias, part of a slurry of propaganda that turned legitimate grievances into the conviction that FEMA agents in unmarked black helicopters were soon to enact a new world order.—
Dan Piepenbring,
Harper's Magazine,
19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The United States’s three most powerful European allies disagree with its plan for ending the brutal, destructive stalemate in Ukraine, with Germany the most disagreeable.—
Dominic Green,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
21 Feb. 2025
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Sometimes that means confronting disagreeable people.—
David Plazas,
The Tennessean,
24 Apr. 2024
Adjective
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In his new biography of Barnes, Blake Gopnik foregrounds this democratic ethos, focusing specifically on the philanthropist’s contributions to building racial equality—despite Barnes’s notoriously cantankerous personality and his tendency toward invective and slur.—
Kelly Presutti,
ARTnews.com,
12 Mar. 2025
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Hackman's criminal mastermind was wily, vain, cantankerous, and a bit too sure of himself.—
David Morgan,
CBS News,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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But his prematurely craggy voice and melodies, combined with arrangement rooted in string bands, were nothing like the soft-rock dudes on the radio; if anything, Hurley was acid folk.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
18 Mar. 2025
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For the Abe Lincoln tomato, for example — a century-old, disease-resistant red slicer with rich, slightly acid flavor — there is seed from listers in California, Nebraska, Maine, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and New Jersey.—
Margaret Roach,
New York Times,
15 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The offensive line, in Monken’s estimation, is the most talented and possibly most ornery unit he’s had at West Point, all the way down to wrestling each other to settle arguments about who’s tougher.—
Brian Hamilton,
The Athletic,
21 Nov. 2024
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They’re led by John Dutton III, an ornery character who nevertheless carries the kind of gravitas that only a veteran movie star like Kevin Costner can bring.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
18 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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More than once, Mariana emits an exasperated scream that goes on and on and on, almost like an operatic aria.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
19 Mar. 2025
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Wihan is summoned by an exasperated captain to the bridge.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
10 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Splenetic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/splenetic. Accessed 4 Apr. 2025.
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