Word: irate
Pronunciation: ai-RAYT
Part of Speech: adjective
Definition: feeling or characterized by great anger
Source: Oxford Dictionaries
OK, so I decided to go with a simpler word this week. There isn’t too much I can say about the word “irate”, except that it’s on the more intense end of the “angry” spectrum. This is easy to understand, since the root of the word “irate” is “ire”, both of which come from Latin, respectively the adjective iratus (“angry”, “enraged”, “furious”) and the noun ira (“anger”, “rage”, “wrath”). Basically, it’s just another word to add to the long list of synonyms for “angry”.
When it comes to my writing, I prefer to use “irate” in scenes involving characters who are so enraged by the given circumstances, they’re practically seeing red. For example, the most recent use of the word in one of my narratives was in a love story involving a teenage couple whose relationship, for sociopolitical reasons, was considered taboo (yes, sort of like a modern version of Romeo and Juliet). In this case, “irate” was one of my words of choice to describe their parents’ reactions upon discovering they’d been secretly involved for several months. While I included various synonyms for “angry” in the scene, this one seemed especially fitting for the level of outrage that I wanted to portray, as it rests on a similar line of the spectrum as words like “infuriated” and “livid”. In my opinion, “irate” is a good word to keep in mind for descriptions of extremely angry characters; after all, you can never have too extensive a vocabulary when writing about emotions!
What are your thoughts on this word? Any suggestions for future “Word of the Week” featured words?
Useful word to have in the toolbox. One fun challenge I try sometimes is to write a scene showing irate (or other such adjectives) without using the word. What actions portray it? Like a man throwing his phone or a woman upending her purse on a counter top after being accused of stealing while shouting that the cashier’s a no good high school drop out. It’s a fun exercise=)
That’s a great idea! I’ve seen a similar exercise in my “What If?” book: creating a concrete description for an abstract idea (one student example was “racism” being described as calling people of a different ethnic background “you people”). I haven’t tried it for emotions yet, but maybe I will soon. It sounds like fun! 🙂