From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishtemperamentaltem‧pe‧ra‧men‧tal /ˌtempərəˈmentl◂/ adjective 1 EMOTIONALlikely to suddenly become upset, excited, or angry – used to show disapproval Preston is particularly good at handling temperamental people.2 BROKENa machine, system etc that is temperamental does not always work properly Sorry if the heater’s a bit temperamental.3 CHARACTER/PERSONALITYrelating to the emotional part of someone’s character serious temperamental differences between the couple —temperamentally adverb
Examples from the Corpus
temperamental• The Prince was not as temperamental as his father.• Surely temperamental exchanges of this nature should occur somewhat later in a relationship.• our temperamental housekeeper• Jo's car is very temperamental in the mornings. Sometimes it starts and sometimes it doesn't.• The only heating was from a temperamental iron stove in the centre of each hut.• Claire Chennault was the temperamental opposite of Stilwell.• Mike and Louis are temperamental opposites.• I am not prone to emotional or temperamental reactions in victory or defeat.• His top offensive threats are two temperamental sophomores, and he made a major schematic shift in midseason.• The concert was good, despite a temperamental sound system.• This may be due to parental management techniques but may also be due to the temperamental state of the child. 