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Glite Dictionary
🌀 Eccentric or odd 😠 Irritable or grumpy
crankish

crankish

1 8.3
Becoming easily annoyed and acting in a bad-tempered way
  • adjective
  • /ˈkræŋkɪʃ/
: irritable
  • He became crankish when he didn't get enough sleep, snapping at his friends for no reason.

Examples

  • After a long day at work, I felt crankish and irritable with everyone around me.

  • The dog's crankish behavior made it hard to approach him; he growled at anyone who got too close.

  • I'm terrible, tired, cranky, no good.

  • You probably felt cranky, foggy, maybe anxious.

  • A big thumbs down from the kids, most of whom are still cranky in skipping their nap.

Synonyms

cranky
vscrankish
108 4.2

Easily annoyed and upset when tired or hungry

is similar but often shows stranger or more eccentric irritability
grumpy
vscrankish
80 1.7

Easily annoyed and in a bad mood

includes that moodiness but can also feel oddly eccentric
testy
vscrankish
33 7.2

Easily annoyed and quick to get angry

is similar but may be less about speed and more oddness
irritable
vscrankish
30 3.7

Quick to become annoyed or angry

is similar but often includes odd or eccentric irritability
crabby
vscrankish
  • Informal
25 5.4

Feeling easily annoyed and in a bad mood

adds a nuance of strange or peculiar irritability
pissy
vscrankish
  • Offensive
22 9.6

Quick to become annoyed and show a bad mood

is similar but can be strange or eccentric rather than merely petty
ornery
vscrankish
  • Informal
22 8.5

Being bad-tempered and stubborn, often hard to deal with

is mainly irritable or strange, not necessarily stubborn or difficult
grouchy
vscrankish
20 3.9

Easily annoyed and often in a bad mood

adds a hint of strange or odd irritable behaviour
petulant
vscrankish
20 8.2

Acting easily annoyed and impatient about small things

is broader, covering general odd or persistent irritability
hot-tempered
vscrankish
10 5.1

Quick to become angry

covers irritability too but not only sudden angry outbursts
cantankerous
vscrankish
9 8.6

Gets angry easily and often argues with people

is mainly about being irritable or strangely bad tempered rather than arguing
crotchety
vscrankish
6 8.8

Often in a bad mood and easily annoyed by small things

shares irritability but is less focused on eccentric unpredictability
short-tempered
vscrankish
6 4.2

Quick to get angry or easily annoyed

is similar but may not be as focused on rapid anger
churlish
vscrankish
  • Formal
5 8.5

Rude and unkind in a way that upsets people

is more about odd or irritable behaviour than deliberate rudeness
irascible
vscrankish
  • Formal
5 8.6

Quick to become angry, often at small things

is more about general irritability and sometimes odd behaviour
bad-tempered
vscrankish
5 3.5

Quick to get angry or annoyed

adds a sense of odd or strange irritable behaviour
ill-tempered
vscrankish
4 5.7

Easily annoyed and quick to get angry

overlaps but often includes odd or striking irritable traits
curmudgeonly
vscrankish
3 9.5

Often bad-tempered and easily annoyed, like a grumpy older person

can be cranky too but not specifically tied to age
quick-tempered
vscrankish
2 6.0

To become angry quickly and easily

is similar but often describes ongoing odd irritability rather than quick anger
crabbed
vscrankish
  • Archaic
1 8.6

Annoyed and easily upset so you speak in a short angry way

is similar but may also feel oddly strange rather than just harsh
narky
vscrankish
  • UK
1 9.9

Easily annoyed and quick to complain about small things

is similar but not necessarily petty or small in complaint
prickish
vscrankish
  • Offensive
1 8.9

Being rude and getting upset by small things

is focused on irritable oddness rather than overt rudeness
ratchety
vscrankish
  • Informal
9.3

Being easily annoyed and bad-tempered, often showing impatience

is similar but can also mean strangely irritable rather than only impatient
huffish
vscrankish
9.9

Being bad-tempered and easily offended

shares moodiness but often includes eccentric irritability too
a bit scorpy
vscrankish
  • Informal
9.9

Being a little angry and easily annoyed with people

is more fully irritable and sometimes shows odd behaviour
vinegarish
vscrankish
9.9

A person who has a sour, unfriendly mood and speaks sharply to others

is similar but often implies quirky or strange irritability

Antonyms

pleasant
323 1.0

Giving a gentle feeling of enjoyment

easygoing
16 2.6

Being calm and relaxed and not easily upset

How Irritable

bad-tempered
5 3.5
crankish
1 8.3
testy
33 7.2
irritable
30 3.7

Surface Forms

crankish positive

Morphology

crankish = crank (transparent) = crank + ish

The adjective is transparently formed from 'crank' + '-ish' to mean 'showing qualities of a crank', so the irritable sense is derivable from the base.

Etymology

Crankish is also related to cranky, a word that means 'easily annoyed' or 'bad-tempered', and because a 'crank' could be a difficult person, crankish can mean being 'irritable'.