feisty
Americanadjective
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full of animation, energy, or courage; spirited; spunky; plucky.
The champion is faced with a feisty challenger.
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ill-tempered; pugnacious.
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troublesome; difficult.
feisty legal problems.
adjective
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lively, resilient, and self-reliant
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frisky
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irritable
Usage
What does feisty mean? Feisty is used to describe someone or something that is full of energy or courage. Someone who’s described as feisty usually has a strong will and is unafraid of showing it, even in difficult circumstances or when challenged.Feisty is also used to describe a person or animal that is ill-tempered: Jack gets feisty when he is tired.Sometimes feisty is used to describe someone or something that is troublesome: My computer gets feisty whenever the software updates. Feisty can be used as a compliment, praising someone’s courage, spiritedness, or pluckiness. Or it can be used somewhat critically, suggesting someone is prone to getting angry. Feisty depends on how someone thinks about the words and actions of the person or thing they think is feisty.Example: It took hours to catch the feisty puppy who easily outran all of us.
Other Word Forms
- feistily adverb
- feistiness noun
Etymology
Origin of feisty
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.
"We'll have to monitor those feisty cumulus clouds and potentially a few showers and breezes as well," Mark Burger, the launch weather officer, said Tuesday.
From Barron's • Apr. 1, 2026
Although Daisy does not have any lines in the film, the video game incarnation of her is known to be energetic and feisty.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 1, 2026
More character actor than leading man, he could be relied upon to inject a feisty, fiery machismo and a cantankerous contrariness into the most mainstream Hollywood offering.
From BBC • Feb. 16, 2026
There’s hockey puck, lots of it: The rowdy U.S. women is barreling into the semifinals, and the NHL stars have finally returned to build a feisty U.S. men’s team.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 15, 2026
The pterodactyls, Dr. Barlow Sloan’s Dinoguide declared, are a feisty and skittish bunch.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
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.
