kittle

A manager faces a kittle situation with a demanding client.

Definition

1. Adjective:

   • Difficult to deal with: "kittle" describes a situation, problem, or person that is tricky, awkward, or hard to manage.
   • Easily angered or capricious: When applied to people, "kittle" means someone who is touchy, irritable, or hard to please.

2. Verb (chiefly dialectal, archaic):

   • To tickle: To touch lightly in a way that causes laughter or a tingling sensation.
   • To puzzle or perplex: To cause confusion or difficulty.

Usage Examples

• Adjective:

  • This is a kittle problem that requires careful thought. (A difficult or tricky problem.)
  • She is a kittle person; you never know how she will react. (A touchy or irritable person.)

• Verb:

  • He tried to kittle the baby's feet. (To tickle.)
  • The complex instructions kittle the students. (To puzzle or confuse.)

Advanced Usage

• "kittle cattle": A phrase meaning people who are difficult to manage or situations that are tricky.
  • Dealing with a room full of toddlers is truly kittle cattle. (A group of hard-to-handle people.)

Variants and Related Words

• Kittlish (adj): easily tickled; sensitive or touchy.
  • The cat is very kittlish around its belly. (Sensitive to touch.)

Synonyms

• Adjective: tricky, awkward, touchy, irritable, thorny.
• Verb: tickle, perplex, baffle.

Idioms

• "Kittle cattle" (proverb): Refers to people or matters that are difficult to manage.
  • Managing a team of artists is often kittle cattle. (A challenging group to oversee.)