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Definition of Irritability
Ir`ri`ta`bil´i`ty | n. | 1. | | | 1. | The state or quality of being irritable; quick excitability; petulance; fretfulness; as, irritability of temper. | | 2. | (Physiol.) A natural susceptibility, characteristic of all living organisms, tissues, and cells, to the influence of certain stimuli, response being manifested in a variety of ways, - as that quality in plants by which they exhibit motion under suitable stimulation; esp., the property which living muscle possesses, of responding either to a direct stimulus of its substance, or to the stimulating influence of its nerve fibers, the response being indicated by a change of form, or contraction; contractility. | | 3. | (Med.) A condition of morbid excitability of an organ or part of the body; undue susceptibility to the influence of stimuli. See Irritation, n., 3. |
Related Words
choler, crossness, distemper, fretfulness, fussiness, ill humor, ill humour, peevishness, pet, petulance, testiness, tetchiness, touchiness
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