Surly

Surly
Surly Sur"ly, a. [Compar. {Surlier}; superl. {Surliest}.] [Probably from sir, and originally meaning, sirlike, i.e., proud. See {Sir}, and {Like}, a.] 1. Arrogant; haughty. [Obs.] --Cotgrave. [1913 Webster]

2. Gloomily morose; ill-natured, abrupt, and rude; severe; sour; crabbed; rough; sullen; gloomy; as, a surly groom; a surly dog; surly language; a surly look. ``That surly spirit, melancholy.'' --Shak. [1913 Webster]

3. Rough; dark; tempestuous. [1913 Webster]

Now softened into joy the surly storm. --Thomson. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • Surly — is an English word meaning gruff, rude, or ill tempered. It may also refer to:* Surly (band), an alternative rock band from Limerick City, Ireland * In The Simpsons , Surly is one of the Seven Duffs. * Surly Bikes, Bloomington, MN, USA. * Surly… …   Wikipedia

  • surly — index fractious, froward, harsh, impertinent (insolent), perverse, petulant, resentful Burton s Legal Thes …   Law dictionary

  • surly — 1560s, lordly, majestic, alteration of M.E. sirly lordly, imperious (14c.), from sir. The meaning rude, gruff is first attested 1660s. For sense development, Cf. lordly, and Ger. herrisch domineering, imperious, from Herr master, lord …   Etymology dictionary

  • surly — morose, glum, *sullen, crabbed, sulky, saturnine, dour, gloomy Analogous words: *rude, ungracious, ill mannered, discourteous: boorish, churlish (see under BOOR): snappish, waspish, fractious, *irritable Antonyms: amiable Contrasted words:… …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • surly — [adj] gruff, bearish boorish, brusque, churlish, cross, crusty, curmudgeonly, discourteous, dour, fractious, glum, grouchy, ill mannered, ill natured, irritable, morose, perverse, rude, saturnine, sulky, sullen, testy, ugly, uncivil, ungracious;… …   New thesaurus

  • surly — ► ADJECTIVE (surlier, surliest) ▪ bad tempered and unfriendly. DERIVATIVES surlily adverb surliness noun. ORIGIN originally in the sense «lordly, haughty»: from obsolete sirly, from SIR(Cf. ↑sir) …   English terms dictionary

  • surly — [sʉr′lē] adj. surlier, surliest [earlier sirly, masterful, imperious < sir,SIR] 1. bad tempered; sullenly rude; hostile and uncivil 2. gloomy and threatening: said of weather 3. Obs. haughty; arrogant surlily adv. surliness n …   English World dictionary

  • surly — surlily, adv. surliness, n. /serr lee/, adj., surlier, surliest. 1. churlishly rude or bad tempered: a surly waiter. 2. unfriendly or hostile; menacingly irritable: a surly old lion. 3. dark or dismal; menacing; threatening: a surly sky. 4. Obs.… …   Universalium

  • surly — UK [ˈsɜː(r)lɪ] / US [ˈsɜrlɪ] adjective Word forms surly : adjective surly comparative surlier superlative surliest unfriendly and rude a waiter with a surly attitude …   English dictionary

  • surly — adjective (surlier; est) Etymology: alteration of Middle English serreli lordly, imperious, probably from sire, ser sire Date: 1523 1. menacing or threatening in appearance < surly weather > 2. obsolete arrogant, imperious 3. irritably sullen and …   New Collegiate Dictionary

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