Synonyms for rankle
Most common
Definitions
- v. 1
To cause irritation, bitterness or acrimony.
My colleague's gratuitous criticism still rankles with me.
- v. 2
To fester.
a splinter rankles in the flesh
Forms
- Past participle
- rankled
e.g. rankled → irritated, riled, annoyed, vexed…
Example sentences
- upset Tom was too upset to talk about what had happened.
- irritate What kind of things does Tom do that irritate you?
- exasperate Sorry, I didn't mean to exasperate you with my endless questions.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| rankle | rising | |
| upset | rising | |
| irritate | rising | |
| rile | rising | |
| exasperate | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- vex1, irk1
- 4 letters
- born1, gall1, fret1, rile1, roil1
- 5 letters
- upset2, annoy2, grate1, pique1, peeve1
- 6 letters
- bother2, offend2, fester2
- 7 letters
- provoke2, incense2, ferment2, inflame2, mortify3
- 8 letters
- irritate3, embitter3
- 9 letters
- aggravate3, infuriate4
- 10 letters
- exasperate4
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (upset2 = 2 syllables).