1. the quality or state of being easily annoyed or irritated; bad-tempered behavior

Examples

• His peevishness increased as the day wore on.
• The child’s peevishness was likely due to being overtired.
• She apologized for her peevishness during the meeting.
• The hot weather seemed to bring out everyone’s peevishness.
• His constant peevishness made him difficult to work with.
• The teacher’s peevishness surprised the usually well-behaved class.