Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective churlish differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of churlish are boorish, clownish, and loutish. While all these words mean "uncouth in manners or appearance," churlish suggests surliness, unresponsiveness, and ungraciousness.

churlish remarks

When can boorish be used instead of churlish?

Although the words boorish and churlish have much in common, boorish implies rudeness of manner due to insensitiveness to others' feelings and unwillingness to be agreeable.

a drunk's boorish behavior

When might clownish be a better fit than churlish?

In some situations, the words clownish and churlish are roughly equivalent. However, clownish suggests ill-bred awkwardness, ignorance or stupidity, ungainliness, and often a propensity for absurd antics.

an adolescent's clownish conduct

In what contexts can loutish take the place of churlish?

The synonyms loutish and churlish are sometimes interchangeable, but loutish implies bodily awkwardness together with stupidity.

a loutish oaf

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of churlish And churlish is exactly how Trump wants to portray him. Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 19 Jan. 2024 In fact, one of the clips from Trump’s speech on Saturday which got the most coverage was his mockery of Biden’s stutter: a churlish—and, no doubt, premeditated—slur. Susan B. Glasser, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2024 Players might be more accepting of dressing in a crowded locker room or answering questions on behalf of a player who speaks infrequently if the responsible party is someone like Ohtani than, say, the notoriously churlish Bonds. Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2024 The victor certainly isn’t Capote, who dissipates the good will of his ex-boyfriend Jack Dunphy (Joe Mantello) with his descent into alcoholism and deliberately courts beatings from his churlish lover John O’Shea (Russell Tovey) with his sharp tongue. Inkoo Kang, The New Yorker, 1 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for churlish 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for churlish
Adjective
  • Queen Elizabeth always preferred the boorish Andrew to the sensitive Charles.
    airmail.news, airmail.news, 23 Nov. 2024
  • Naturally, the media hyped the event as Bart versus Bill, a showdown between one show’s wholesome family values and the other’s brash, boorish cynicism — the aspirational ’80s facing off against the anarchic ’90s.
    Darryn King, Vulture, 17 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • Where DiCaprio is brash and wild and uncouth, Gladstone is understated, filled with a deep sadness but also a well of light and humor.
    Erik Kain, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
  • Masters of None The practice of interviewing government officials became commonplace in the United States by the 1880s, but was considered uncouth in parts of Europe through the end of the First World War.
    Harper's Magazine, Harper's Magazine, 2 Aug. 2024
Adjective
  • Every great festival lineup needs an eccentric art-pop groundbreaker and some loutish guys who write anthems.
    Al Shipley, Vulture, 6 Dec. 2024
  • Homer wasn’t fooling around: those who aid the beggar are rewarded, those who mistreat him—the loutish suitors who have long besieged Penelope—are killed.
    Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 22 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • So ridiculous the referee initially had trouble believing that anyone could be so reckless & stupid.
    The Athletic UK Staff, The Athletic, 6 Jan. 2025
  • And there was no such thing ever as a bad decision or a stupid question.
    Harrison Richlin, IndieWire, 4 Jan. 2025
Adjective
  • As vice-president, Kamala Harris was generally regarded as unimpressive and slightly clownish, with her banal repetitions and too-frequent outbursts of too-exuberant laughter.
    Avi Nelson, Boston Herald, 30 Oct. 2024
  • Its members' firm repudiation of the unqualified and clownish Matt Gaetz for attorney general shows that its members can still stiffen their sinews and summon up the courage to curb President-elect Donald Trump's appetite for surrounding himself with sycophantic boobs.
    Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 27 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Their classless behavior is almost unbelievable at times.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2024
  • More recently, Venezuela’s disastrous efforts under Presidents Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro to pursue a classless society through expropriations and unsustainable spending ultimately chased away businesses, private investment, and most of the middle class.
    Luis Alberto Moreno, Foreign Affairs, 8 Dec. 2020
Adjective
  • Less than one day into 2025, the superstar has already punched in with one of her characteristic comebacks, shutting down a troll who demanded new music and called her a rude name on Instagram Wednesday (Jan. 1).
    Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 2 Jan. 2025
  • Several replies praised the user for taking such direct action against someone who was rude to them.
    Charlotte Phillipp, People.com, 27 Dec. 2024
Adjective
  • The vast majority of females in the book are described with vulgar disrespect by the various characters and the narrator.
    Brittany Wallman, Miami Herald, 2 Jan. 2025
  • There is no excuse and no rationalization for a vulgar, inhumane act that senselessly took a life.
    David Faris, Newsweek, 27 Dec. 2024

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Thesaurus Entries Near churlish

Cite this Entry

“Churlish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/churlish. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.

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