surly
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Surly — Sur ly, a. [Compar. {Surlier}; superl. {Surliest}.] [Probably from sir, and originally meaning, sirlike, i.e., proud. See {Sir}, and {Like}, a.] 1. Arrogant; haughty. [Obs.] Cotgrave. [1913 Webster] 2. Gloomily morose; ill natured, abrupt, and… … The Collaborative International Dictionary of English
Surly — is an English word meaning gruff, rude, or ill tempered. It may also refer to:* Surly (band), an alternative rock band from Limerick City, Ireland * In The Simpsons , Surly is one of the Seven Duffs. * Surly Bikes, Bloomington, MN, USA. * Surly… … Wikipedia
surly — index fractious, froward, harsh, impertinent (insolent), perverse, petulant, resentful Burton s Legal Thes … Law dictionary
surly — 1560s, lordly, majestic, alteration of M.E. sirly lordly, imperious (14c.), from sir. The meaning rude, gruff is first attested 1660s. For sense development, Cf. lordly, and Ger. herrisch domineering, imperious, from Herr master, lord … Etymology dictionary
surly — morose, glum, *sullen, crabbed, sulky, saturnine, dour, gloomy Analogous words: *rude, ungracious, ill mannered, discourteous: boorish, churlish (see under BOOR): snappish, waspish, fractious, *irritable Antonyms: amiable Contrasted words:… … New Dictionary of Synonyms
surly — [adj] gruff, bearish boorish, brusque, churlish, cross, crusty, curmudgeonly, discourteous, dour, fractious, glum, grouchy, ill mannered, ill natured, irritable, morose, perverse, rude, saturnine, sulky, sullen, testy, ugly, uncivil, ungracious;… … New thesaurus
surly — ► ADJECTIVE (surlier, surliest) ▪ bad tempered and unfriendly. DERIVATIVES surlily adverb surliness noun. ORIGIN originally in the sense «lordly, haughty»: from obsolete sirly, from SIR(Cf. ↑sir) … English terms dictionary
surly — [sʉr′lē] adj. surlier, surliest [earlier sirly, masterful, imperious < sir,SIR] 1. bad tempered; sullenly rude; hostile and uncivil 2. gloomy and threatening: said of weather 3. Obs. haughty; arrogant surlily adv. surliness n … English World dictionary
surly — surlily, adv. surliness, n. /serr lee/, adj., surlier, surliest. 1. churlishly rude or bad tempered: a surly waiter. 2. unfriendly or hostile; menacingly irritable: a surly old lion. 3. dark or dismal; menacing; threatening: a surly sky. 4. Obs.… … Universalium
surly — UK [ˈsɜː(r)lɪ] / US [ˈsɜrlɪ] adjective Word forms surly : adjective surly comparative surlier superlative surliest unfriendly and rude a waiter with a surly attitude … English dictionary
surly — adjective (surlier; est) Etymology: alteration of Middle English serreli lordly, imperious, probably from sire, ser sire Date: 1523 1. menacing or threatening in appearance < surly weather > 2. obsolete arrogant, imperious 3. irritably sullen and … New Collegiate Dictionary
