as in crab
an irritable and complaining person
that old sourpuss must spend all his time making sure no one traipses across his lawn
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Recent Examples of sourpuss
The Republicans sat like stubborn sourpusses eager for the 81-year-old president to stumble.
—
Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024
Four generations on, the Grinch’s humble roots on the page as a black-and-white sourpuss, looking down on Who-ville and rueing the impending town feast, have become a Christmas cottage industry.
—Patrick Sauer, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Dec. 2020
The suggestion turns me into Schrödinger's sourpuss: neither angry nor disappointed but a superposition of both.
—Tom Simonite, Wired, 18 Feb. 2020
Even a sourpuss like Heifetz let his hair down madly dashing through the finale like a child’s first moments at Disneyland.
—Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2019
Reeves shoulders the dual roles of twin brothers with markedly divergent personalities: peevish sourpuss John and sweet-natured James, who is deep into a losing battle with AIDS.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2018
According to the Washington Post, a jury awarded famed sourpuss Grumpy Cat $710,000 in damages on Monday, settling a lawsuit that began in 2015 between the cat’s company and the Grenade beverage company.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE.com, 25 Jan. 2018
To most Internet users, Grumpy Cat - the feline with a furry frown - is a minor celebrity that capitalized on the popularity of memes in 2012 as a perpetual sourpuss.
—The Washington Post, OregonLive.com, 25 Jan. 2018
Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024
Four generations on, the Grinch’s humble roots on the page as a black-and-white sourpuss, looking down on Who-ville and rueing the impending town feast, have become a Christmas cottage industry.
—Patrick Sauer, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Dec. 2020
The suggestion turns me into Schrödinger's sourpuss: neither angry nor disappointed but a superposition of both.
—Tom Simonite, Wired, 18 Feb. 2020
Even a sourpuss like Heifetz let his hair down madly dashing through the finale like a child’s first moments at Disneyland.
—Los Angeles Times, 31 July 2019
Reeves shoulders the dual roles of twin brothers with markedly divergent personalities: peevish sourpuss John and sweet-natured James, who is deep into a losing battle with AIDS.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2018
According to the Washington Post, a jury awarded famed sourpuss Grumpy Cat $710,000 in damages on Monday, settling a lawsuit that began in 2015 between the cat’s company and the Grenade beverage company.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE.com, 25 Jan. 2018
To most Internet users, Grumpy Cat - the feline with a furry frown - is a minor celebrity that capitalized on the popularity of memes in 2012 as a perpetual sourpuss.
—The Washington Post, OregonLive.com, 25 Jan. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sourpuss
Noun
-
Who’s going to climb over all the other crabs and inevitably kill them in order to survive?—
Katie Kilkenny,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Sep. 2025
-
The lobster and crab on a baguette at Linden in Los Angeles is a knuckle sandwich that’s also a knuckle sandwich.—
Andy Wang,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Sometimes an analyst’s downgrade will wreck an uptrend and hand the joystick over to the bears.—
Josh Brown,Sean Russo,
CNBC,
8 Sep. 2025
-
New Mountain bounced off the COVID bear-market bottom much like other BDCs.—
Brett Owens,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
So energy from pedaling is recovered at the crank and converted into electricity to drive a hub motor.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Aug. 2025
-
The ensemble cast members are game and deliver spirited, crank-up-the-volume performances, notably the vamping about de Armas and the unravelling and often unclad Law.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
21 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
As a boss, Canby was exceptionally kind and protective, a joyful curmudgeon.—
Zach Helfand,
New Yorker,
25 Aug. 2025
-
Nothing adds depth to an irascible curmudgeon quite like an irrational love of pets that do not love you back.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
6 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
To the detriment of the proceedings late in the second act, there is a wad of exposition gristle that brings things full stop in the form of a labored revelation of why Diamond is such a grump and perhaps maybe won’t be one in the future.—
Christopher Smith,
Oc Register,
30 July 2025
-
Cross serves the town of Eddington as a useless figure of authority—a shiftless, asthmatic grump who mumbles complaints at lawbreakers and halfheartedly manages a staff of cops at his office.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
23 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sourpuss.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sourpuss. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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