boorish

[ boor-ish ]

See synonyms for: boorish boorishly boorishness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of or like a boor; unmannered; crude; insensitive.

Origin of boorish

First recorded in 1555–65; boor + -ish¹

synonym study For boorish

Boorish, oafish, rude, uncouth all describe persons, acts, manners, or mannerisms that violate in some way the generally accepted canons of polite, considerate behavior. Boorish, originally referring to behavior characteristic of an unlettered rustic or peasant, now implies a coarse and blatant lack of sensitivity to the feelings or values of others: a boorish refusal to acknowledge greetings. Oafish suggests slow-witted, loutlike, clumsy behavior: oafish table manners. Rude has the widest scope of meaning of these words; it suggests either purposefully impudent discourtesy or, less frequently, a rough crudity of appearance or manner: a rude remark; a rude thatched hut. Uncouth stresses most strongly in modern use a lack of good manners, whether arising from ignorance or brashness: uncouth laughter; an uncouth way of staring at strangers.

Other words for boorish

coarse, uncouth, loutish, churlish

See synonyms for boorish on Thesaurus.com

Opposites for boorish

refined

See antonyms for boorish on Thesaurus.com

Other words from boorish

boor·ish·ly, adverb
boor·ish·ness, noun

Words Nearby boorish

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use boorish in a sentence

Then a noisy, boorish and very large American family invades the beach.
Olivia Colman Is Extraordinary in The Lost Daughter, Maggie Gyllenhaal's Bold Directorial Debut | Stephanie Zacharek | September 5, 2021 | Time
Anyone would be upset, but nothing justified his overbearing and boorish behavior.
Locked up in the Land of Liberty: Part III | Yariel Valdés González | July 21, 2021 | Washington Blade
A senior member of Russia's parliament called the remarks “boorish.”
On the novelty of calling a killer a killer | Philip Bump | March 18, 2021 | Washington Post
My aunt is quite confident that you, whom she calls the "Pope of Etiquette," will set me straight and tell me that I'm being boorish.
Miss Manners: Declining help from the unmasked | Judith Martin, Nicholas Martin, Jacobina Martin | February 8, 2021 | Washington Post
Costa was to prove himself equally boorish when, ten minutes into the second-half, he headbutted Martins Indi, a Dutch midfielder.
Dutch Treat: The Netherlands Sinks Spain In World Cup 2014 | Tunku Varadarajan | June 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

Consequently, he was booed every time he touched the ball by the boorish, and unforgiving, Brazilians in the crowd.
Dutch Treat: The Netherlands Sinks Spain In World Cup 2014 | Tunku Varadarajan | June 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Octopus is one of those sleazy and boorish Americans whose instincts prove correct.
This 1979 Novel Predicted Putin’s Invasion Of Crimea | Michael Weiss | May 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The commercial culture will tolerate multiple divorces, trips to rehab, and all sorts of boorish behavior.
Racism Is a Tough Sell: The Real Reason Everyone Dumped Paula Deen | Daniel Gross | June 28, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
All those messy emotions, the obsessive thoughts, the clenched teeth, are considered boorish and barbaric.
Our Right to Revenge After the Boston Attacks | Thane Rosenbaum | May 6, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
Have you come again to disturb me to no purpose, and to bring me some boorish fellow, as you did just now?
Brother Jacques (Novels of Paul de Kock, Volume XVII) | Charles Paul de Kock
Most young people think they are natural when they are only boorish and rude.
The Best of the World's Classics, Restricted to Prose, Vol. VII (of X)--Continental Europe I | Various
Only vacant or boorish faces met her eyes; it was not a high-class crowd that had come to see the Two-headed Girl.
Quicksilver Sue | Laura Elizabeth Howe Richards
Beginning by viewing the Colonel in sulky silence, he had answered his kinsman's overtures only by a rude stare or a boorish word.
The Wild Geese | Stanley John Weyman
We became particularly hot upon some boorish sneer of Drummle's, to the effect that we were too free with our money.
Great Expectations | Charles Dickens

British Dictionary definitions for boorish

boorish

/ (ˈbʊərɪʃ) /

adjective

ill-mannered, clumsy, or insensitive; rude

Derived forms of boorish

boorishly, adverb
boorishness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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