ir ‧ ri ‧ ta ‧ tion /ˌɪrəˈteɪʃ ə n, ˌɪrɪˈteɪʃ ə n/ BrE AmE noun
1 . [uncountable] the feeling of being annoyed about something, especially something that happens repeatedly or for a long time:
The heavy traffic is a constant source of irritation.
irritation at/with
The doctor’s irritation at being interrupted showed.
2 . [countable] something that makes you annoyed:
The children are just an irritation for him when he’s trying to work.
3 . [countable, uncountable] a painful sore feeling on a part of your body:
The astringent can cause irritation to sensitive skin.
a throat irritation
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THESAURUS
▪ anger a strong emotion that you feel because someone has behaved badly or because a situation seems bad or unfair:
Andrea still feels a lot of anger towards her mom, who left when she was a little girl.
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I’ve said some things in anger that have almost cost me my marriage.
▪ annoyance slight anger or impatience:
He expressed annoyance at the way his comments had been misinterpreted.
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The meetings were held in secret, much to the annoyance of some members of Congress.
▪ irritation a feeling of being annoyed and impatient, especially because something keeps happening or someone keeps saying something:
He could not hide his irritation at her persistent questioning.
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Unwanted sales calls are a source of irritation for many people.
▪ frustration a feeling of being annoyed, especially because you cannot do what you want or because you cannot change or control a situation:
You can imagine my frustration when I found out that the next bus didn’t leave till 4 hours later.
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There is a growing sense of frustration over the situation in Burma.
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The government has expressed frustration at the slow legal process.
▪ exasperation a feeling of being very annoyed because you cannot control a situation, learn to do something, or understand something, even though you are trying very hard:
Isaac sighed in exasperation.
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Exasperation at the team’s lack of success was evident among the fans.
▪ resentment anger because you think you are being treated badly or unfairly:
The sudden increase in the numbers of immigrants has caused resentment among local people.
▪ indignation anger and surprise about an unfair situation:
His voice sounded full of indignation.
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The scandal caused righteous indignation among opposition politicians.
▪ ill/bad feeling anger between two people because of something that has happened:
I had no ill feeling towards him.
▪ rancour British English , rancor American English formal a feeling of anger and hatred towards someone who you cannot forgive because they harmed you in the past:
Even though he had lost the court case, he had shown no rancour.
▪ spleen formal anger, especially anger that is unreasonable:
He vented his spleen (=said why he was angry) against the airline in an article in the Times.