Webster's 1828 Dictionary

PETULANCEULANCY

n.[L. petulantia.] Freakish passion; peevishness; pettishness; sauciness. Peevishness is not precisely synonymous with petulance; the former implying more permanence of a sour, fretful temper; the latter more temporary or capricious irritation. That which looked like pride in some, and petulance in others.
The pride and petulance of youth.

 

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

PETULANCE; PETULANCY

Pet "u *lance, Pet "u *lan *cy, n. Etym: [L. petulania: cf. F. pétulance.See Petulant. ]

 

Defn: The quality or state of being petulant; temporary peevishness; pettishness; capricious ill humor. "The petulancy of our words. " B. Jonson. Like pride in some, and like petulance in others. Clarendon. The lowering eye, the petulance, the frown. Cowper.

 

Syn. -- Petulance, Peevishness. -- Peevishness implies the permanence of a sour, fretful temper; petulance implies temporary or capricious irritation.

 

New American Oxford Dictionary

petulance

pet u lance |ˈpeCHələns ˈpetʃələns | ▶noun the quality of being childishly sulky or bad-tempered: a slight degree of petulance had crept into his voice.

 

Oxford Dictionary

petulance

petulance |ˈpɛtʃʊl (ə )ns | ▶noun [ mass noun ] the quality of being childishly sulky or bad-tempered: a slight degree of petulance had crept into his voice.

 

Oxford Thesaurus

petulance

petulance noun peevishness, bad temper, ill temper, pettishness, pique, impatience, irritability, moodiness, sulkiness, snappishness, touchiness, waspishness, irascibility, tetchiness, testiness, querulousness, fractiousness, cantankerousness, grumpiness, grouchiness, crabbiness, ill humour, spleen; sullenness, surliness, sourness, churlishness, ungraciousness; N. English mardiness; informal whinginess; N. Amer. informal crankiness, a sore head.

 

French Dictionary

pétulance

pétulance n. f. nom féminin Vivacité turbulente. : Parler avec pétulance. SYNONYME exubérance . Note Orthographique pétul an ce.

 

Sanseido Wisdom Dictionary

petulance

pet u lance /pétʃ (ə )ləns |pétjʊ -/名詞 U «…に対して » すねること, 気難しさ, 不機嫌, 短気 «at » .