antagonize

Why would he show up and antagonize the justices?

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026

So that’s where Stroup and Bourne were in December 1977: entrenched in their positions, confident in their success, and unafraid to antagonize their opponents.

From Slate ● Dec. 23, 2025

Shannon and Hannah, as different as two people could be, form a connection that can’t help but antagonize jealous Maxine, whom Shannon cheekily calls the “insatiable widow.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 24, 2025

Of course, any American has the right to criticize judges but defendants usually don't do it because generally it's a bad idea to unnecessarily antagonize someone who has such power over your life.

From Salon ● Mar. 19, 2025

I needed to make up with Helene tonight, not antagonize her further.

From "An Ember in the Ashes" by Sabaa Tahir

However, naltrexone, in both short- and long-acting forms, has the opposite pharmacology: it antagonizes mu receptors, occupying them without activating them.

From Scientific American ● Sep. 13, 2023

It all makes for a slight but satisfying Gru origin story, as the budding baddie tries to impress the Vicious 6 and antagonizes Arkin’s vengeful Wild Knuckles along the way.

From Washington Post ● Jun. 28, 2022

It doesn’t stop the smoldering resentment that I feel deep down when she antagonizes me.

From Slate ● Aug. 30, 2019

The varying currency of these attributes is what draws the two women together, and also what antagonizes them, particularly once they come upon Faoud, a handsome young refugee, seemingly swept up onto the shore.

From New York Times ● Jul. 5, 2017

Nothing worries and antagonizes a female bear more than to have people between her and her brood.

From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson

Some also contend the deal has unnecessarily antagonized China, Australia’s main trading partner.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2025

John Coffee, a law professor at Columbia Law School, said Costello "greatly antagonized" Merchan.

From Salon ● May 21, 2024

So, people who are sophisticated litigators often don’t do that because it so often fails, and all you’re left with is an angered and antagonized judge who you’ve just called biased.

From Slate ● Apr. 11, 2024

Instead, he says, the experiment merely shows that, when antagonized the snakes are likely to put up a more spirited defense.

From Science Magazine ● Apr. 3, 2024

Fyntan and Celine must have been alarmed by our misguided outpost in Kilanga, where we slept in their same house, antagonized their former friends, even turned their parrot out to nature’s maw.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

And, two, how did the Ottawa captain feel about the White House posting an A.I.-generated video on its TikTok account that purported to show Tkachuk antagonizing the country where he works?

From Slate ● Feb. 27, 2026

She needs to maintain her popular tough stance on China without overly antagonizing Japan’s No. 2 customer for exports.

From Barron's ● Feb. 10, 2026

Eric Sondheimer, The Times’ high school sports columnist, nicknamed the Trailblazers’ swarming, antagonizing defense the “Kaboom Squad” — a superhero-like, nonstop force of power, speed and IQ.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2025

President Trump and New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, two singular forces in U.S. politics who have spent months antagonizing one another, set aside their differences—for now—following a meeting at the White House.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 12, 2025

Miles didn’t seem to particularly like me, and I’d been antagonizing him all day.

From "Made You Up" by Francesca Zappia