| Equally irksome, however, is the trend for outpourings of cloying sentimentality that deface the personal columns at this time of year. |
| Accountability, and the political engagement it encourages, is always irksome to governments. |
| Managements may protest in all sincerity that that's all there is, or that this or that new and more irksome work practice is essential. |
| This has not only slowed down the whole process of integration but has also proved to be irksome to stakeholders in commerce. |
| Clearly, this is an irksome fact to someone whose ambitions extend beyond maximising profit. |
| Why subject yourself to an irksome book when so many sublime ones are available? |
