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irritar

to irritate, to annoy

verb ee-rree-TAHR Rare

Origin: Latin irritare (to provoke)

Also means

to inflame (skin or tissue)

Usage Note

Irritar covers both emotional irritation and physical inflammation: la crema le irritó la piel ('the cream irritated her skin'). The reflexive irritarse means 'to get annoyed' or 'to become inflamed.' It is more formal than molestar for annoyance, and less severe than enfurecer ('to infuriate').

Examples

"El ruido constante le irritaba mucho."

Natural Translation

The constant noise irritated him a lot.

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