rankle
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
- ranklingly adverb
- unrankled adjective
Etymology
Origin of rankle
1250–1300; Middle English ranclen < Middle French rancler, Old French raoncler, variant of draoncler to fester, derivative of draoncle a sore < Late Latin dracunculus small serpent, diminutive of Latin dracō serpent; dragon, carbuncle
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.
What really rankles Hedda, though, is that Lovborg and Thea have created something sublime while she has sought refuge with a scholastic mediocrity.
From Los Angeles Times
King was Jackson’s mentor, but this act rankled the civil rights leader’s more senior allies, who viewed it as rank self-promotion.
From Salon
He’s also felt the pain of insurance-price hikes that have rankled many Americans.
Even the name suggested grandeur and royal approval, and his living in style there with Sarah Ferguson seemed to represent a sense of entitlement that rankled with the public.
From BBC
But Hanoi's ballooning surplus with the bloc has rankled European leaders who have called for the removal of non-tariff barriers on EU products such as automobiles.
From Barron's
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.
