bad-tempered

the compound adjective 'bad-tempered' is a relatively modern english formation, emerging in the 19th century. it combines the old english word 'bad', which originally meant 'effeminate man' or 'hermaphrodite' but evolved to signify something undesirable, with 'temper', a word with a rich history from latin 'temperare' (to mix, regulate, moderate). the concept of 'temper' came to denote one's state of mind or disposition, specifically the 'mixture' of one's humors. the suffix '-ed' attaches to the noun to create an adjective meaning 'possessing a bad temper'. thus, the word's logic is transparent: it literally describes someone characterized by an unpleasant or poorly regulated disposition.

Structure: bad + temper + ed bad (old english, meaning 'inferior, evil, unpleasant'); temper (latin via old english and middle english, meaning 'to mix, regulate, or moderate one's nature'); ed (old english, suffix forming adjectives from nouns or verbs, meaning 'having the quality of').