Synonyms of surly

surly

adjective

ˈsər-lē 

1

as in pouting

given to or displaying a resentful silence and often irritability

went about his chores in a surly huff, totally annoyed that he was stuck at home on this beautiful Saturday

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pouting
• irritable
• sullen
• sulky
• pouty
• glum
• brooding
• mopey
• irascible
• sensitive
• grumpy
• cross
• morose
• petulant
• dour
• snappish
• grouchy
• peevish
• crotchety
• cantankerous
• disagreeable
• gloomy
• crabby
• testy
• waspish
• snarky
• cranky
• ornery
• pettish
• snippy
• choleric
• raspy
• short-tempered
• dyspeptic
• bilious
• tetchy
• ill-tempered
• quick-tempered
• ratty
• perverse
• temperamental
• prickly
• huffy
• ill-humored
• ill-natured
• snappy
• snippety
• touchy
• moping
• bearish
• thin-skinned

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cheerful
• sociable
• cheery
• good-natured
• perky
• sunny
• carefree
• easygoing
• good-humored
• good-tempered
• relaxed
• gladsome
• happy-go-lucky

2

as in irritable

having or showing a habitually bad temper

the surly receptionist told us we'd have to wait outside in the rain

Synonyms & Similar Words

• irritable
• angry
• cantankerous
• ornery
• disagreeable
• exasperated
• dyspeptic
• splenetic
• bilious
• ill-tempered
• acid
• mad
• ill-humored
• indignant
• ill-natured
• bloody-minded
• grumpy
• upset
• irascible
• bearish
• querulous
• petulant
• grouchy
• crotchety
• snappish
• peevish
• crabby
• depressed
• irate
• testy
• contentious
• uptight
• sullen
• peppery
• cranky
• choleric
• morose
• short-tempered
• snippy
• dour
• cussed
• touchy
• argumentative
• quick-tempered
• contrary
• fussy
• anal
• glum
• schoolmarmish
• old-maidish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• amiable
• friendly
• pleasant
• agreeable
• sweet
• congenial
• gentle
• nice
• benign
• kind
• amicable
• good-natured
• cheerful
• happy
• good-humored
• exuberant
• good-tempered
• cheery
• joyful
• glad
• vivacious
• bubbly
• lively
• effervescent
• content
• lighthearted
• calm
• patient
• placid
• serene
• tolerant
• high-spirited
• long-suffering

Synonym Chooser

How is the word surly different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of surly are crabbed, gloomy, glum, morose, saturnine, sulky, and sullen. While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner.

a typical surly teenager

When is it sensible to use crabbed instead of surly?

While in some cases nearly identical to surly, crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner.

the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than surly?

The words gloomy and surly are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness.

a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

When might glum be a better fit than surly?

The synonyms glum and surly are sometimes interchangeable, but glum suggests a silent dispiritedness.

a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

How do morose and glum relate to one another, in the sense of surly?

Morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy.

morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

When could saturnine be used to replace surly?

While the synonyms saturnine and surly are close in meaning, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition.

a saturnine cynic always finding fault

When can sulky be used instead of surly?

The meanings of sulky and surly largely overlap; however, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness.

grew sulky after every spat

In what contexts can sullen take the place of surly?

In some situations, the words sullen and surly are roughly equivalent. However, sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable.

remained sullen amid the festivities

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of surly

The seven-time Most Valuable Player, a reluctant and at times surly interview subject during his days with the Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates, showed his more excited and expansive side. —Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2026

The film, set in 1920s Montana, unwraps the lives of the Burbank brothers, Phil (Benedict Cumberbatch) and George (Jesse Plemons), after George marries lonely widow Rose Gordon (Kirsten Dunst), setting surly Phil into a tailspin of cruelty that envelops the family. —Sezin Devi Keohler, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Mar. 2026

The actor, who portrays surly Russian hockey captain Ilya Rozanov in the show, is in no way, shape or form Russian, and learned to speak the language rather flawlessly in just three weeks before filming. —Dan Heching, CNN Money, 28 Feb. 2026

The booms from the ice cracking sounded like a chorus of slamming doors, as if Poseidon had hundreds of surly teenagers living underwater with him. —Robert Annis, Outside, 24 Feb. 2026

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