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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
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Recent Examples of surly
Rostov is exiled to the servants’ quarters in the attic, stripped of most of his possessions, and is kept under constant surveillance by a surly KGB operative (Björn Hlynur Haraldsson).
—
Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025
Commerce City police helped return a surly rattlesnake to the wild this month after a resident found the venomous reptile coiled in their home’s driveway.
—Max Levy, Denver Post, 31 May 2025
The third reason to slip the surly bonds of Earth is that our air is extremely good at shielding us from many wavelengths of light our eyes cannot see.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 29 May 2025
Now, Stefani realizes that her own family members — including her surly teen brother, Charlie (Teo Briones), and her cousins Erik (Richard Harmon), Julia (Anna Lore), and Bobby (Owen Patrick Joyner) — are next in line.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for surly
Rob Salkowitz, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2025
Commerce City police helped return a surly rattlesnake to the wild this month after a resident found the venomous reptile coiled in their home’s driveway.
—Max Levy, Denver Post, 31 May 2025
The third reason to slip the surly bonds of Earth is that our air is extremely good at shielding us from many wavelengths of light our eyes cannot see.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 29 May 2025
Now, Stefani realizes that her own family members — including her surly teen brother, Charlie (Teo Briones), and her cousins Erik (Richard Harmon), Julia (Anna Lore), and Bobby (Owen Patrick Joyner) — are next in line.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 16 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for surly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surly
Adjective
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Avi tries to comfort his grieving (read: irritable) mother by saying at least his grandmother and grandfather are together again in Heaven.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
22 Aug. 2025
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For years men have blamed divorce on menopause and said women are irritable and irrational, says Alyx Coble-Frake, founder of The Agenda, an app that helps women track their menstrual cycle to help increase productivity.—
Laura Trujillo,
USA Today,
14 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Until the UFOs arrive, the sullen grandeur of OK Computer will have to suffice for Yorke, and the rest of us, too.—
EW Staff Published,
EW.com,
14 Aug. 2025
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The sullen model continued to turn round and round in her mind, arms splayed.—
Mona Awad,
New Yorker,
20 July 2025
Adjective
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The family defended themselves against an angry mob of hundreds of people who surrounded the house, throwing rocks and threatening the family, Duggan said.—
Dana Afana,
Freep.com,
14 Aug. 2025
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Freed of her caring duties, angry and uncertain about her future Karl gets on a Greyhound bus and heads to Las Vegas where Jean is working as a waitress at the El Cortez.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Harness racing was his first love, and during the next half-century, his name became synonymous with the sulky sport in Chicagoland.—
Neil Milbert,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Aug. 2025
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Founder Max Siegelman drew upon his family’s harness racing roots thanks to the boarding and teaching facility for the sport involving the powerful animal, a sulky and human direction that dates to the 1800s in the US.—
Roxanne Robinson,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Advertisement Johnson anticipates more challenges from his cantankerous colleagues.—
Eric Cortellessa,
Time,
7 Aug. 2025
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Smith plays Hanna, a cantankerous nonagenarian, who patrols the Golden Gate Bridge every day and intervenes when people get too close to the edge.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The passengers include several other mountain trekkers, among them an American professor (Bernard Curry) and his teenage daughter, Starr (Grace O’Sullivan), the latter’s nature instantly signified by her pouty demeanor and inability to put away her cell phone.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
26 June 2025
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While the Pocket Blush is known for delivering gorgeous flushed cheeks in seconds, the Peptide Lip Shape is a recent favorite for perfectly contoured pouty lips.—
Kleigh Balugo,
StyleCaster,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Their aggressive, ornery, and unpredictable nature has earned them the nickname Black Death.—
Kris Millgate,
Outdoor Life,
7 Aug. 2025
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Meanwhile, eighty-three-year-old Harrison Ford earned his first Emmy nod for his role as the ornery therapist on the show Shrinking.—
Taylor Wilson,
USA Today,
16 July 2025
Adjective
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Over the weekend, reports emerged that the higher tariffs followed a disagreeable Thursday phone call between Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter and Trump — which Swiss officials rejected, according to Reuters.—
Sophie Kiderlin,Jenni Reid,
CNBC,
4 Aug. 2025
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Trump and his supporters prefer a happy history, a pleasant history that arouses patriotism by overlooking disagreeable people and despicable events that sully the nation’s reputation and mar the magnificence of the American story.—
William C. Hine,
Twin Cities,
23 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Surly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surly. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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