Infuriating

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈfjʊərieɪtɪŋ/

Definitions

1. Arousing intense feelings of irritation and anger in someone
2. Provoking strong anger or irritation in a person
3. Eliciting feelings of deep frustration and upset

Etymology: "Infuriating" is simply "infuriate" with the suffix "-ing" added, and the suffix has a long pedigree of its own. Its distant ancestor is a Proto-Indo-European participle ending, which passed through Proto-Germanic and Proto-West Germanic into Old English as "-ende". Over the Middle English period it wore down to "-inge" and then "-ing", the form still used today. The verb "infuriate" is the more recent piece. It is built from the Latin "infuriatus", meaning "enraged" or "made furious", itself from "in-" plus "furia" (fury). Adding "-ing" turns that verb into an adjective describing whatever causes the anger, so an infuriating habit is one that drives people up the wall.

Synonyms: exasperating, irritating

Antonyms: calming