ill-natured

American  

[il-ney-cherd] / ˈɪlˈneɪ tʃərd /

adjective

1. having or showing an unkindly or unpleasant disposition.

   Synonyms:

   sour, gloomy, morose, sulky, petulant, cranky

   Antonyms:

   amiable, kindly

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ill-natured British  

adjective

1. naturally unpleasant and mean

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Synonym Usage

See cross.

Other Word Forms

• ill-naturedness
  noun
• ill-naturedly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of ill-natured

First recorded in 1625–35

Explanation

Someone who's ill-natured is cranky and disagreeable. Most fairy tales have at least one ill-natured antagonist, an evil stepmother or a ferocious ogre. Mean and nasty people are sometimes just plain ill-natured — it's not in their nature to be generous and cheerful. Your ill-natured cat probably scratches anyone who tries to pet her. Bad kitty. This unfriendly adjective combines ill-, "badly" or "not well," with natured, from nature and its "innate disposition" meaning. The Latin root is natura, "natural character or quality."

Example Sentences

The room smelled like perfume and hairspray, with the sour hint of body odor mixed with all-natural deodorant.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 11, 2026

“When I think of Pennsylvania pretzel culture, I particularly think of the all-natural, handmade sourdough pretzel,” Skolnick states.

From Salon • Apr. 28, 2026

So it’s as all-natural as his daily diet of organic chicken breast that the wrestler-turned-blockbuster-star would want to play Kerr in his own pursuit of excellence.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 3, 2025

Swim tests conducted in the tank show that a jellyfish equipped with a combination of the swimming pacemaker and forebody can swim up to 4.5 times faster than an all-natural jelly while carrying a payload.

From Science Daily • Feb. 29, 2024

“This? Oh, yeah. My mom’s into the whole all-natural thing. Farmers markets, homemade soap—that sort of stuff.”

From "The Wrong Way Home" by Kate O’Shaughnessy