Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Querulous or discontented.
  • adjective Ill-tempered.
  • adjective Contrary; fractious.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Querulous; petulant; ill-tempered; cross; fitful.
  • Perverse; self-willed; forward; testy.
  • Characterized by or indicating discontent, petulancy, or fretfulness.
  • Childish; silly; foolish; trifling.
  • Synonyms Fretful, Pettish, etc. (see petulant), ill-natured, testy, irritable, waspish.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Habitually fretful; easily vexed or fretted; hard to please; apt to complain; querulous; petulant.
  • adjective Expressing fretfulness and discontent, or unjustifiable dissatisfaction.
  • adjective obsolete Silly; childish; trifling.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Constantly complaining; fretful, whining.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective easily irritated or annoyed

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English pevish, possibly from Latin perversus, turned the wrong way, perverse, past participle of pervertere, to turn around, corrupt; see pervert.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Late 14th century peyvesshe "capricious, silly", perhaps a corruption of Latin perversus "perverted". The meaning "fretful" develops in the 16th century.

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Examples

  • It even has its own pair of Watchmen-style deconstructed superheroes: Mermaid Man, shuffling in peevish slippers toward senility, and his long-suffering sidekick, Barnacle Boy.

    SpongeBob's Golden Dream 2009

  • It even has its own pair of Watchmen-style deconstructed superheroes: Mermaid Man, shuffling in peevish slippers toward senility, and his long-suffering sidekick, Barnacle Boy.

    SpongeBob's Golden Dream 2009

  • It even has its own pair of Watchmen-style deconstructed superheroes: Mermaid Man, shuffling in peevish slippers toward senility, and his long-suffering sidekick, Barnacle Boy.

    SpongeBob's Golden Dream 2009

  • The word peevish would pretty well describe the condition of Mrs. Alstine, who had a chronic ailment that prevented her enjoying the hospitality of friends.

    Five Thousand Dollars Reward A. Frank [pseud.] Pinkerton

  • His face was insignificant, his expression peevish, his features without the animation of any high purpose.

    The Box with Broken Seals 1906

  • There is more poignant music in the Primavera, in the weary, indifferent countenances of his lean, neuropathic Madonnas -- Pater calls them "peevish" -- in his Venus of the

    Promenades of an Impressionist James Huneker 1890

  • This question -- which Hohenfels called peevish as he buried himself in his book -- was not answered until we had passed Verviers, Chaudfontaine and Liège.

    Lippincott's Magazine of Popular Literature and Science Volume 15, No. 85, January, 1875 Various

  • She is so pale, and so fretful, so peevish, which is not in her nature.

    White Lies Charles Reade 1849

  • Obama held his own and I didn't find him at all "peevish".

    Gallup: Hillary And Obama Both Electable In Purple States 2009

  • I defy you to point to a single phrase in that speach that was "peevish" or "entitled."

    Hillary: Obama Was "Part Time" State Senator 2009

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