as in irritable
easily irritated or annoyed
extremely waspish, she uses her wit viciously when irritated
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Recent Examples of waspish
The book brings to life characters such as the waspish U.S. Army general Joseph Stilwell and the eccentric U.S. ambassador Patrick Hurley.
—
Richard Bernstein, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2014
Among the waspish regulars of the Algonquin Round Table, Robert Benchley cut a relatively docile figure.
—New York Times, 11 May 2022
At his waspish best, Mr. Wheatcroft is entertaining on all this.
—Richard Aldous, WSJ, 8 Oct. 2021
The waspish Queen – played by Rebecca Trehearn, whose deliciously withering grandeur would give Marie Antoinette pause — is not, to put it mildly, pleased.
—David Benedict, Variety, 19 Aug. 2021
The author takes a waspish tone that doesn’t always enhance his arguments, but the book is an excellent distillation of a complicated menace.
—Barton Swaim, WSJ, 26 Feb. 2021
The portrait of prewar upper-class English life is superb, the characters are vividly drawn and the comedy, as always in Waugh, is by turns waspish, warm and knockabout.
—John Banville, WSJ, 2 Oct. 2020
Once again, waspish commentators noted, an American woman has caused a ruction in the royal family.
—Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2020
Bening is capable of being waspish, consoling, frail, indomitable, and woebegone – sometimes all at once.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 May 2018
Richard Bernstein, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2014
Among the waspish regulars of the Algonquin Round Table, Robert Benchley cut a relatively docile figure.
—New York Times, 11 May 2022
At his waspish best, Mr. Wheatcroft is entertaining on all this.
—Richard Aldous, WSJ, 8 Oct. 2021
The waspish Queen – played by Rebecca Trehearn, whose deliciously withering grandeur would give Marie Antoinette pause — is not, to put it mildly, pleased.
—David Benedict, Variety, 19 Aug. 2021
The author takes a waspish tone that doesn’t always enhance his arguments, but the book is an excellent distillation of a complicated menace.
—Barton Swaim, WSJ, 26 Feb. 2021
The portrait of prewar upper-class English life is superb, the characters are vividly drawn and the comedy, as always in Waugh, is by turns waspish, warm and knockabout.
—John Banville, WSJ, 2 Oct. 2020
Once again, waspish commentators noted, an American woman has caused a ruction in the royal family.
—Washington Post, 9 Jan. 2020
Bening is capable of being waspish, consoling, frail, indomitable, and woebegone – sometimes all at once.
—Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 30 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waspish
Adjective
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Avi tries to comfort his grieving (read: irritable) mother by saying at least his grandmother and grandfather are together again in Heaven.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
22 Aug. 2025
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For years men have blamed divorce on menopause and said women are irritable and irrational, says Alyx Coble-Frake, founder of The Agenda, an app that helps women track their menstrual cycle to help increase productivity.—
Laura Trujillo,
USA Today,
14 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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While Starship traveled its furthest distance of 2025 during its May 27 flight, the test marked the third time in a row that the spacecraft came apart in a fiery mishap before attempting key objectives.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
27 Aug. 2025
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After the intensity of the Virgo New Moon and the deep-dive vibes of the Scorpio Moon earlier in the week, this fiery lunar shift invites us to shake things off.—
Dossé-Via Trenou,
Refinery29,
24 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Waspish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waspish. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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