1
as in to steam
to be excited or emotionally stirred up with anger
that kind of rude treatment from a young person makes me rankle
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in to infuriate
to make angry
it rankles me when some schools can't even afford paper and pencils for the students
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rankle
Even before the theft, the piece rankled more than a few people in Denmark.
—
Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 5 Mar. 2025
The announcement was seen as an olive branch from Rubio to Musk, whose aggressive efforts to get into all corners of the federal government have rankled the secretary of State and other Cabinet officials.
—Brett Samuels, The Hill, 10 Mar. 2025
Andrew Harnik / Getty Images His response appeared to rankle the committee chair, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La, who spoke about fears from public health experts that the government might direct resources toward a new study.
—Berkeley Lovelace Jr., NBC News, 5 Mar. 2025
Earlier in February, Vance addressed the Munich Security Conference with a speech that rankled European leaders.
—Naomi Lim, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 28 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rankle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rankle
Verb
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While steaming, be sure to hold the steamer nozzle upright so hot water doesn't spill or dribble out.—
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But the game also marked the return of one of the world’s most legendary stadium eats: the Dodger Dog, an icon since 1962, which features a 10-inch pork hot dog that’s either grilled or steamed.—
Verb
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Crook told police the woman driving the Tesla had bumped his truck when opening her car door, infuriating him.—
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And Democrats bet that Mr. Musk would infuriate their voters more than Mr. Trump’s endorsement would benefit Judge Schimel.—
Verb
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Any opportunity for scientific discussion was skipped, and the proposal seemed to be on the path toward a potential major policy change as the pandemic was raging.—
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One large circular oven was dug out as a silo, and researchers found a thick floor, which suggests particularly intense fires raged in the oven, possibly used for cooking or ceramics, researchers said.—
Verb
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President Trump’s remarks about Canada becoming the 51st state have greatly angered Canadians.—
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The craft retailer, which already closed 800 stores across the U.S. in February, has consumers angered by the terms and conditions of their going-out-of-business sales.—
Verb
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The pair, who met as college undergrads, both burned with idealism and recognized their privilege could be leveraged for a game-changing idea.—
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The Ellen MacArthur Foundation promotes circular fashion and says that, in the United States, an amount of clothing equal to a garbage truck is ferried to landfills or burned every second.—
Verb
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The university caved to Trump's demands, enraging students and graduates alike.—
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The Democratic base is enraged, but the party remains staunchly divided on how to respond two months into his second term.—
Verb
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Rosin bags are made from a sap that’s pulled from pine trees in Honduras, then boiled to distill out the turpentine.—
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Tour guide Danielle Oteri has navigated dozens of group trips through southern Italy and New York City, and they’re all typically made up of the same archetypes: the planner, the drinker, the one who is quietly boiling with resentment.—
Verb
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Waltz now has a bunch of top officials, and their teams, who are annoyed at him for drawing bad publicity.—
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However, standing in the middle of a road to capture the Eiffel Tower in the background is not only unsafe but can also annoy locals.—
Cite this Entry
“Rankle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rankle. Accessed 7 Apr. 2025.
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