fractious C2 Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˈfɹæk.ʃəs/ See IPA manual Freq #70509 Meanings 1 adj Easily annoyed and inclined to complain or quarrel. By late afternoon the tired, fractious children were arguing over every toy. 2 adj Hard to control; unruly and resistant to authority. The new manager struggled to lead such a fractious team. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 adj · easily annoyed and inclined... nettlesomeirritablequarrelsome 2 adj · hard to control; unruly and... recalcitrantunruly Word family Derived forms fractiouslyfractiousness Etymology AI details From fraction (“discord”) (now obsolete) + -ous. Topics Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # fractious **Type:** Word **Level:** C2 **Part of speech:** adj **IPA (US):** /ˈfɹæk.ʃəs/ **Frequency rank:** 70509 ## Meanings 1. Easily annoyed and inclined to complain or quarrel. 2. Hard to control; unruly and resistant to authority. ## Examples - By late afternoon the tired, fractious children were arguing over every toy. - The new manager struggled to lead such a fractious team. ## Derived Forms - fractiously - fractiousness ## Etymology From fraction (“discord”) (now obsolete) + -ous. ## AI Etymology Fractious is from fraction (“discord”) (now obsolete) + -ous. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern adjectival form is built from the named base and affix. Current senses include easily annoyed and inclined to complain or quarrel and hard to control; unruly and resistant to authority. The wider family includes derived forms such as fractiously and fractiousness. ## Topics - Describing Qualities - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown