Find your perfect word!
Definition peevish
Etymology
From Middle English pevische, pevisse, pevysse, peivesshe, also peyuesshe, peeuish, of obscure origin. Perhaps from Middle English pew, pue (“a plaintive cry, the cry of a bird”), equivalent to pue + -ish. Cognate with Scots pevis, pevess, pevych, pevach (“peevish”), Scots pew, peu (“to cry in a plaintive manner”). See pue.
An alternative etymology derives Middle English peyvesshe (“capricious, silly”), as a possible corruption of Latin perversus (“perverted”). The meaning “fretful” develops in the 16th century.
A third suggestion links the word to classical Latin expavidus (“startled, shy”) (< ex- + pavidus) via an unrecorded variant with -ai- of Middle French espave (“stray [of animals]; foreign [of persons]; lost property, flotsam”) (first attested 1283 in Old French; French épave).The semantic connection is thought to be the behaviour of stray animals. Compare -ish suffix.
Adjective
peevish (comparative more peevish, superlative most peevish)
- Characterized by or exhibiting petty bad temper, bad-tempered, moody, cross. [from 1520]
- Constantly complaining, whining; childishly fretful.
- Easily annoyed, especially by things that are not important; irritable, querulous.
- (obsolete, adverb) Peevishly.
- (obsolete, Northern England) Clever, expert. Template:18th c.
- (obsolete, Canada, Northern England) Sharp, piercing, bitter (of the wind); windy, blustery (of the weather).
- (chiefly obsolete) Perverse, refractory; headstrong, obstinate; capricious, skittish; (also) coy. [from c. 1400]
- (obsolete) Silly, senseless, foolish. [16th–17th c.]
- (obsolete) Beside oneself; out of one's senses; mad. [16th c.]
- (obsolete) Spiteful, malignant, mischievous, harmful. [16th c.]
- (obsolete) Hateful, distasteful, horrid. [16th c.]
Results 102 Words with the letters PEEVISH
15 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
14 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
13 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
12 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
11 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
10 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
9 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
7 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
5 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
4 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
3 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
2 letter words with the letters PEEVISH ↑
You can also try words with the phrase PEEVISH, words starting with the letters PEEVISH, or words ending in the letters PEEVISH.
Favorites Searches
Words… ending with q, starting with q, starting with qa, starting with qo, with two letters, starting with x, starting with j, ending with j,
Some random searches: Words with the letters IL, Words with the letters GEQ, Words with the letters BUYOY, Words with the letters UA,