adj., -i·er, also -i·er, -i·est, also -i·est.
Peevish; testy: "As a critic gets older, he or she usually grows more tetchy and limited in responses" (James Wolcott).
[Probably from Middle English tache, teche, blemish (influenced by TOUCHY), from Old French tache, teche, from Vulgar Latin *tacca, from Gothic taikns, sign.]
tetchily tetch'i·ly adv.tetchiness tetch'i·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
