crass
Americanadjective
-
without refinement, delicacy, or sensitivity; gross; obtuse; stupid.
crass commercialism; a crass misrepresentation of the facts.
- Synonyms:
- indelicate, oafish, boorish, dull
-
Archaic. thick; coarse.
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of crass
First recorded in 1535–45; from Middle French, from Latin crassus “fat, thick”
Explanation
A crass comment is very stupid and shows that the speaker doesn't care about other people's feelings. In today's day and age, you don't have to wear black to a funeral, but to show up in clown pants is simply crass. The source of this adjective is Latin crassus, "thick, dense, fat." A similar development of meaning can be seen in English dense in the sense of "stupid, slow to understand," from Latin densus, "thick, dense," and in English thick, which can also be used to mean "stupid."
Vocabulary lists containing crass
Flying Lessons & Other Stories
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The Cuckoo's Calling
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The Sound and the Fury
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Reform UK's candidate in the Makerfield by-election has admitted making "crass" comments online, after scrutiny of his past posts during the campaign.
From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026
Were he around today, he’d probably have some thoughts about the state of children’s animation too, after seeing director Andy Serkis’ crass, frenetic, Americanized “update” of his anti-totalitarianism creature tale.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
The backlash on social media was harsh, with many viewers calling the gimmick crass, disrespectful to the nominees and even dystopian.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 12, 2026
If Hulu’s “Shoresy” is the poster child for successfully balancing raunch and heart, “Ted” is on the opposite end — crass and lazy.
From MarketWatch • Feb. 27, 2026
“Jason Grace, the West Wind has been called many things...warm, gentle, life-giving, and devilishly handsome. But I have never been called startling. I leave that crass behavior to my gusty brethren in the north.”
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
