irksome

English

WOTD – 19 August 2006

Etymology

From Middle English irkesome, irksum, equivalent to irk +‎ -some, or perhaps continuing (in altered form) Old English weorcsum (“painful, hurtful”).

Pronunciation

• enPR: ûrk'səm, IPA^(key): /ˈɜɹksəm/

• Audio (General Australian); /ˈɜːksəm/:

  (file)

Adjective

irksome (comparative more irksome, superlative most irksome)

1. Marked by irritation or annoyance; disagreeable; troublesome by reason of long continuance or repetition

   Synonyms: bothersome, annoying, irritating, wearisome, tedious

   He has this irksome habit of racing up to red lights, so he has to brake heavily.

   • 1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XII, in Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 235:

     The young Spaniard had been in many situations of greater difficulty, but in none more irksome.

Related terms

• irk
• irksomely
• irksomeness

Translations

disagreeable or troublesome by reason of long continuance or repetition; bothersome; annoying; irritating; wearisome; tedious

• Armenian: տաղտուկ (hy) (taġtuk)
• Bulgarian: досаден (bg) (dosaden), неприятен (bg) (neprijaten)
• Dutch: vervelend (nl)
• Finnish: hankala (fi)
• Georgian: თავმომაბეზრებელი (tavmomabezrebeli), გამაღიზიანებელი (gamaɣizianebeli), გასაბრაზებელი (gasabrazebeli), მომაბეზრებელი (momabezrebeli)
• Greek:

  Ancient Greek: ὀχληρός (okhlērós)

• Irish: liosta
• Latin: molestus, onerōsus
• Maori: mākatikati, hīrawerawe
• Romanian: enervant (ro), supărător (ro), plictisitor (ro), fastidios (ro)
• Spanish: fastidioso (es), enfadoso (es)
• Ukrainian: набридливий m (nabrydlyvyj), дратівливий m (drativlyvyj), надокучливий m (nadokučlyvyj)

Anagrams

• kirsome, smokier