pettishness

1 9.0

Being easily annoyed and angry about small things in a childish way

noun
/ˈpɛtɪʃnəs/

: irritabilidad

The child's pettishness was evident when she threw a tantrum over not getting the toy she wanted.

Examples

He displayed his pettishness when he refused to join the game just because his friend didn't let him choose first.
Her constant nagging about small details showed a level of pettishness that frustrated everyone in the meeting.
Given how grievous the rest of these sins are, to complain about the book's repackaging may seem like mere pettishness.

Blog text (12)

Synonyms

temper

vspettishness

291 3.6

A sudden short burst of anger

is about ongoing petty moodiness rather than sudden explosive anger

irritability

vspettishness

12 4.2

Being easily annoyed or quick to become angry

is the same tendency but framed as small or petty annoyance

petulance

vspettishness

4 9.0

Being easily annoyed and acting childish

is similar but stresses petty annoyance and childish attitude

crankiness

vspettishness

3 6.0

Being easily annoyed and acting in odd, fussy ways

focuses more on childish pettiness rather than eccentric fussiness

surliness

vspettishness

1 7.7

A way of behaving that is angry and unfriendly

is less hostile and more focused on small, childish annoyances

peevishness

vspettishness

1 7.3

A tendency to become easily annoyed and impatient

is more about petty, small-minded irritation rather than simple impatience

fussiness

vspettishness

1 5.7

A state of being easily upset or hard to please

leans more toward petty sulkiness than careful complaint about details

touchiness

vspettishness

1 7.2

A tendency to be easily upset by small remarks or criticism

describes sensitivity specifically to offense rather than general petty mood

snappishness

vspettishness

1 8.5

A habit of giving short, angry answers when annoyed

is more about ongoing petty moodiness than brief sharp replies

crabbiness

vspettishness

1 5.5

A mood of being easily annoyed and bad-tempered

is more focused on small, childish irritations than general unpleasantness

biliousness

vspettishness

Literature

1 9.9

A tendency to become angry easily

is milder and more about petty irritation than explosive anger

crotchetiness

vspettishness

1 9.9

A tendency to be odd, fussy, or easily annoyed

is more about small, childish annoyance rather than quirky fussiness

crabbedness

vspettishness

9.9

Often being bad-tempered and hard to please

is narrower, highlighting petty or childish causes of irritability

Antonyms

serenity

55 4.4

A calm, peaceful feeling without worry

calmness

11 2.7

A state without strong feelings or worry in your mind

How Irritable

irascibility

Formal

1 9.3

ill temper

5 4.6

pettishness

1 9.0

irritability

12 4.2

calmness

11 2.7

Surface Forms

pettishness singular

pettishnesses plural

Morphology

pettishness = pettish (transparent) = pet + ish + ness

The suffix '-ness' is transparently added to form a noun indicating the state or quality of being pettish.

Etymology

Pettishness comes from pettish, which is related to petty ('small') and pet ('favored' or 'spoiled'). A helpful way to remember pettishness is to imagine a small, spoiled 'pet' who quickly gets annoyed over little things, which explains why the word means being easily irritated or bad-tempered in a childish way.