petulant
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
- petulance noun
- petulantly adverb
- unpetulant adjective
Etymology
Origin of petulant
First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin petulant- (stem of petulāns ) “impudent,” akin to petere “to seek, head for”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Hegseth’s language choices and petulant tone do not demonstrate an ignorance of what rhetorical situations demand of him; instead, they reflect a refusal to be emasculated by such cumbersome norms.
From Salon
“Some people thought it was a bit petulant,” said Dave Burns, a hotelier and publican in Christchurch who helped launch the campaign.
It’s a Cantonese phrase that in its most innocuous use means naughty or petulant.
From Los Angeles Times
The retelling of the first lady’s life recasts her as a petulant former cabaret performer who would rather be on stage than in the White House.
Freddie isn’t merely the petulant brat of the first Broadway production, but suffering from bipolar disorder.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
