cantankerous

adjective

can·tan·ker·ous kan-ˈtaŋ-k(ə-)rəs

kən-

Synonyms of cantankerous next

: difficult or irritating to deal with

a cantankerous mule

cantankerously adverb

cantankerousness noun

Did you know?

The Origin of Cantankerous Is Mysterious

Cantankerous people are cranky: they’re grumpy and angry and if we think charitably about them for a moment we might consider that they possibly suffer from a health affliction that sours the mood. It’s been speculated that cantankerous is a product of the Middle English contack, meaning “contention,” under the influence of a pair of words: rancorous and cankerous. Rancorous brings the anger and "bitter deep-seated ill will" (as rancor can be understood to mean). And cankerous brings the perhaps understandable foul mood: a cankerous person suffers from painful sores—that is, cankers.

Examples of cantankerous in a Sentence

Contemporaries often found him aloof, standoffish, and cantankerous and his mannerisms and diction inscrutable. —

Jonathan Spence, New York Review of Books, 22 Oct. 2009

There are those who contend the hockey maven is a cantankerous old coot—rife with unpopular opinions and quick to assert them —

Rick Harrison, Newsday, 19 Sept. 2004

… it's something ultimately more memorable: a self-portrait of a coolly cantankerous woman, reformed but unrepentant. —

David Gates, New York Times Book Review, 21 Nov. 1999

In his last years, Harriman was the kind of cantankerous old man who once berated a financial planner by threatening to make him sit in the corner and wear a dunce cap. —

Bryan Burrough, Vanity Fair, January 1995

a cantankerous old woman who insisted that nothing should ever be allowed to change

Recent Examples on the Web

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Carrey portrays Ebenezer Scrooge, a cantankerous, greedy old man who is visited by three ghosts on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his ways. —

Keith Langston, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024 The endearing homecoming introduces new characters including Moni (Hualalai Chung), a passionate island bard; Loto (Rose Matafeo), a quirky shipwright; Kele (David Fane), a cantankerous farmer; and Simea (Khaleesi Lambert-Tsuda), Moana’s tenacious younger sister. —

Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Nov. 2024 Pic directed by Christopher Andrews, who is making his feature directing debut, follows Michael (Abbott) who is the last son of a farming family, and lives an isolated existence with his ailing, cantankerous father Ray. —

Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 20 Nov. 2024 The comedy written and directed by Eisenberg stars The Social Network star with Succession’s Kieran Culkin as cantankerous cousins exploring their family roots on a road trip in Poland. —

Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 3 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cantankerous