crass

adjective

ˈkras 

1

a

: gross sense 2a

especially : having or indicating such grossness of mind as precludes delicacy and discrimination

b

: being beneath one's dignity

crass concerns of daily life

c

—used as a pejorative intensifier

crass flattery

crass propaganda

2

: guided by or indicative of base or materialistic values

crass commercialism

crass measures of success

crassly adverb

crassness noun

Synonyms

• coarse
• common
• crude
• gross
• ill-bred
• illiberal [archaic]
• incult
• insensible
• low
• lowbred
• lowbrow
• raffish
• rough
• rough-hewn
• roughneck
• rude
• rugged
• tasteless
• uncouth
• uncultivated
• uncultured
• unpolished
• unrefined
• vulgar

Choose the Right Synonym for crass

stupid, dull, dense, crass, dumb mean lacking in power to absorb ideas or impressions.

stupid implies a slow-witted or dazed state of mind that may be either congenital or temporary.

stupid students just keeping the seats warm

stupid with drink

dull suggests a slow or sluggish mind such as results from disease, depression, or shock.

monotonous work that leaves the mind dull

dense implies a thickheaded imperviousness to ideas.

too dense to take a hint

crass suggests a grossness of mind precluding discrimination or delicacy.

a crass, materialistic people

dumb applies to an exasperating obtuseness or lack of comprehension.

too dumb to figure out what's going on

Examples of crass in a Sentence

We are urgently in need of progress, but not if it means the kind of crass complacency that ignores the fact that history for most men and women to date has meant misery and fruitless toil … —Terry Eagleton, Harper's, March 2005

Minor criticism though it was compared to the rest, the most galling calumny of all as far as Gaius Marius was concerned was the perpetual inference that he was unacceptably crass because he had no Greek. —Colleen McCullough, The First Man in Rome, (1990) 1991

He had removed her from that crass monied Middle Atlantic society where she had seemed stilted and fragile. —John Updike, Couples, 1968

A few people seemed shocked by her crass comments.

a loudmouthed jerk given to rude jokes and crass comments

Recent Examples on the Web

In 2013, Pearson’s state exams featured crass, commercial product placements as well as reading passages lifted from Pearson textbooks. —Kemala Karmen, New York Daily News, 18 Dec. 2024

There is a deeper explanation for this, which, in a crass, regressive move, the author waits a full 236 pages to reveal, and even then only via a leering, Crying Game–style focus on his genitalia. —Robert Rubsam, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2024

Whether Tammy was a sympathetic victim or a crass criminal seemed to depend on the scene and the song, and unfortunately, those songs from a composer by the name of Elton John were not exactly praise-worthy. —Ew Staff, EW.com, 11 Dec. 2024

But as some critics cited the lawsuit after the shooting, or even joked about it, others viewed these reactions as crass. —Daniel R. Depetris, Newsweek, 5 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Latin crassus thick, gross

First Known Use

circa 1625, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

crass

adjective

ˈkras 

: showing no interest in the finer things : insensitive

crassly adverb

crassness noun