Word of the Day for Tuesday June 21, 2005 irascible \ih-RASS-uh-buhl\, adjective: Prone to anger; easily provoked to anger; hot-tempered. The lawyer described his client as an irascible eighty-two-year-old eccentric who alternated between spinning fascinating tales about her past and cussing him out. --Jack Olsen, [1]Hastened to the Grave His father was an irascible and boastful bully, a heavy drinker and a gambler. --Robin Waterfield, [2]Prophet: The Life and Times of Kahlil Gibran _________________________________________________________ Irascible is from Latin irascibilis, "prone to anger," from ira, "anger," which is also the source of ire and irate. References 1. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312966997/ref=nosim/lexico 2. http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/031219319X/ref=nosim/lexico Dictionary.com Entry and Pronunciation http://dictionary.reference.com/search?r=9&q=irascible