From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishfractiousfrac‧tious /ˈfrækʃəs/ adjective DHBANGRYsomeone who is fractious becomes angry very easily SYN irritable Children become fractious when they are tired.fractious baby/child etc —fractiousness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
fractious• Republicans have a fractious debate led by pro-choice governors, including California Gov.• Many latter-day Democrats believe that he was uniquely poised to hold together the New Deal's fractious electoral majority.• Maggie grew up in a large, fractious family.• The opening scenes of this fractious heist movie see him at his most acute.• I muttered like a fractious housewife.• Chopra moved between them, calming their fractious nerves.• For not long after his return, Midvale-now like a family to him, if sometimes a fractious one-began to unravel.• Admittedly, they went to North Carolina as a fractious team with too many cliques.fractious baby/child etc• If we get any fractious children we always send for Helen.Origin fractious (1600-1700) fraction “lack of agreement” ((16-18 centuries)) 