Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • adjective Causing annoyance, weariness, or vexation: synonym: boring.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Wearisome; tedious; burdensome; vexatious; causing annoyance or discomfort, especially by long continuance or frequent repetition.
  • Weary; uneasy.
  • Synonyms Wearisome, Tedious, etc. See wearisome.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adjective Wearisome; tedious; disagreeable or troublesome by reason of long continuance or repetition
  • adjective obsolete Weary; vexed; uneasy.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Disagreeable or troublesome by reason of long continuance or repetition; bothersome; annoying; irritating; wearisome; tedious.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • adjective so lacking in interest as to cause mental weariness

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English irkesome, irksum, equivalent to irk +‎ -some, or from Old English weorcsum ("painful, hurtful").

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Examples

  • Avey and Wojcicki played up the recreational aspects of 23andMe testing—broccoli taste, fast twitch muscles, and earwax consistency—because they appealed to so many people, but they found the tag irksome.

    The $1,000 Genome Kevin Davies 2010

  • When Kelsch sees "irksome" open-door retailers, she goes inside and tells owners and consumers about the wasted energy.

    Energy-conscious riled by stores that leave doors open and A/C on 2010

  • When Kelsch sees "irksome" open-door retailers, she goes inside and tells owners and consumers about the wasted energy.

    Energy-conscious riled by stores that leave doors open and A/C on 2010

  • One tic of blogs, the MSM and commenters I find kind of irksome is the habit of thinking that "public statements" = "action" and "action" = "public statements."

    Obama: Disappointed And Frustrated Over Collapse Of Auto-Bailout 2009

  • The word "issue" -- the Darfur issue, the Iraq issue, the homelessness issue -- is kind of irksome, but it hints at a vital fact: As Americans of a certain economic status and social class, our "issues" are other people's lives.

    Brian Palmer: We Can Help Burma 2008

  • Despite its enduring popularity, he has always refused to reminisce about The Likely Lads and says he finds the continuing public fascination with the series 'irksome'.

    Home | Mail Online 2010

  • Antitrust suits as a means of enforcing the law, Roosevelt declared, were "irksome" and prolonged affairs.

    LewRockwell.com 2009

  • Antitrust suits as a means of enforcing the law, Roosevelt declared, were "irksome" and prolonged affairs.

    LewRockwell.com 2009

  • Second, the 'irksome' five-star in the corner of the regional flag is soon to be a thing of the past.

    American Chronicle 2008

  • In fact, theories are already rife regarding the relationship between Obama's choices and the support he received from the pro-Israeli lobby in Washington during the campaign, despite his 'irksome' middle name and his unsettling 'ties' to world-renowned Palestinian intellectuals Edward Said and Rashid Khalidi.

    Palestine Chronicle - Headlines 2008

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