as in annoying
causing annoyance
a riling habit that drives his wife crazy
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in bothering
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts
one sure way to rile me is to keep yelling for me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in angering
to make angry
her husband isn't easily riled, but once he is, he stays that way for days
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of riling
Cerys Davies, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Despite losing to Georgia in the conference championship game, DeBoer's Crimson Tide earned one of this year's 12 CFP spots, potentially riling up coaches and fans from other programs who felt their teams got snubbed.
—Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Jaxson de Ville is riling up supporters via pub crawl.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Officials like Bongino are in the awkward position of backtracking after years of highlighting the case and lobbying for the release of information from the sidelines — riling up their viewers and supporters in the process.
—Emily Brooks, The Hill, 8 July 2025
Verb
With this police run-in, Country Joe and the Fish received a slew of press, riling up the public ahead of their Woodstock performance.
—Cerys Davies, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
Despite losing to Georgia in the conference championship game, DeBoer's Crimson Tide earned one of this year's 12 CFP spots, potentially riling up coaches and fans from other programs who felt their teams got snubbed.
—Matthew Couden, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2025
Jaxson de Ville is riling up supporters via pub crawl.
—Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Officials like Bongino are in the awkward position of backtracking after years of highlighting the case and lobbying for the release of information from the sidelines — riling up their viewers and supporters in the process.
—Emily Brooks, The Hill, 8 July 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for riling
Adjective
-
Food allergy safety is now being treated as a pillar of hospitality, not an inconvenience or an annoying exception.—
K. H. Koehler,
Ascend Agency,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Everybody’s a critic, and critics can be very annoying.—
Judith Martin,
Sun Sentinel,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Like, cool, got the game, but now the TV feels small, and suddenly the thermostat situation is bothering you, too.—
Juhi Wadia,
PC Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Eventually, the girl let on that her classmate had indeed been bothering her, poking her in the back and face with his fingers — but did not say the boy had threatened to kill her, according to the police report.—
Jeff Ernsthausen,
ProPublica,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
This causes a rift within the family, particularly angering the eldest son, Erik, who feels deeply betrayed.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
25 Mar. 2026
-
The administration also decided to allow the up to 80,000 metric tons of low-tariff, lower-quality beef from Argentina to be imported to help keep grocery prices down, angering cattle ranchers who argue the decision will hurt domestic production and sales.—
Jennifer Jacobs,
CBS News,
17 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Here's where things get a bit irritating.—
Justin Pot,
PC Magazine,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Rather than focusing on clarity with harsh actives, a key component to the glass skin trend is using gentle, non-irritating ingredients that take your skin to a healthier state.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
InStyle,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
So, all the things people were yelling about with Southwest weren’t bugging me.—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
21 Mar. 2026
-
But so much of my journalism has been about something that’s bugging me.—
Jack Denton,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Granular, often infuriating descriptions like that one are ultimately what make Hail Mary sing.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
-
Instead of infuriating customers at drive-thrus, the company is looking to exasperate its existing employees with the tech instead.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Kurt's key takeaways Healthcare can be frustrating.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Kelly portrays Gentile as, at once, the FBI’s best and most frustrating lead.—
Edmund H. Mahony,
Hartford Courant,
22 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But so often left unsaid by Gu are the moral ambiguities that come with choosing to represent a country that has been heavily criticized by Human Rights Watch, among other watchdog groups, for denying rights of freedom of expression and for persecuting government critics.—
Zak Keefer,
New York Times,
17 Feb. 2026
-
The term refers to biblical passages in which Jesus described Jews in specific communities who were persecuting the early Christians.—
Jennifer Berry Hawes,
ProPublica,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Riling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/riling. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
