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temper tantrum
Word History and Origins
Origin of temper tantrum1
Example Sentences
New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman revealed the details of the GOP candidate’s latest temper tantrum during a CNN interview Wednesday night with Kaitlan Collins.
Mets relief pitcher Jorge López threw a temper tantrum during a blowout loss to the Dodgers on Wednesday.
Each of us was, at any given time, one captain’s announcement away from a temper tantrum, but we were also competitively careful to be polite to one another and to the airline staff, as if determined to demonstrate that those wild videos of short-tempered passengers being duct-taped to their seats did not represent us, the makeshift civilization of this departure lounge.
Greene, meanwhile, is having a monumental temper tantrum, ostensibly because Johnson managed to avoid shutting down the government by making a deal with Democrats to keep it funded through next fall.
Instead of conceding and turning the page, we were treated to a nuclear-powered temper tantrum, and the most loathsome behavior by a political loser in history, which ended with the attempted coup.
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More About Temper Tantrum
What does temper tantrum mean?
A temper tantrum is an angry outburst by someone who has lost their temper in reaction to something they didn’t want to happen. The word tantrum by itself means the same thing.
Temper tantrums are often loud and they can be violent. A child kicking and screaming in response to being told to turn off the TV is having a temper tantrum.
The phrase is typically used to refer to an outburst by a young child, especially a toddler. But it can also be used to refer to an outburst by an adult. When used this way, it’s intended to criticize the person for being unreasonable and acting like a child.
Temper tantrum is often used with the verb throw, as in My son threw a temper tantrum right in the middle of the store.
Example: I work in customer service, so I’m used to dealing with temper tantrums from people who don’t get their way.
Where does temper tantrum come from?
The first records of the term temper tantrum come from around the 1920s. The first records of the word tantrum come from the 1700s, but its ultimate origin is uncertain.
If you’ve ever seen a toddler erupt in screams of rage and start stomping and rolling around over not getting something they wanted, you’ve witnessed a temper tantrum. Young children are still learning how to manage their emotions, so it’s common for them to have occasional temper tantrums, even over things that don’t seem like a big deal. When an adult throws a temper tantrum, it may not involve literal yelling and screaming—an angry social media post in ALL CAPS over some minor problem might be called a temper tantrum. Saying that an adult is throwing a temper tantrum is always intended to be a criticism of that person.
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How is temper tantrum used in real life?
Children sometimes throw temper tantrums when they don’t get what they want. When the term is applied to an outburst by an adult, it’s used in a critical way that’s intended to imply that that person is acting like a child.
[playground]
Other dad: Which kid is yours?
Me: *looks at 2-year-old throwing temper tantrum for no reason* I don't remember.
— James Breakwell, Exploding Unicorn (@XplodingUnicorn) February 21, 2017
Just watched a 5 yr old kid thank his dad for taking him out and buying him lunch and i also watched a 16 yr old kid have a temper tantrum over getting the iphone 11 and not the iphone 11 pro max.. the mall is a wierd place
— Jenna (@jennafavret) December 26, 2019
Nothing worse than listening to a grown man have a temper tantrum over a video game. 😒
— Jenne 🎃🦖 (@JenneWithAnE) November 29, 2015
Try using temper tantrum!
Is temper tantrum used correctly in the following sentence?
I just saw a customer throw a temper tantrum at the server because the restaurant was out of ketchup.
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