cantankerous

[ kan-tang-ker-uhs ]

/ kænˈtæŋ kər əs /

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See synonyms for: cantankerous / cantankerousness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

disagreeable to deal with; contentious; peevish: a cantankerous, argumentative man.

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Origin of cantankerous

First recorded in 1765–75; origin uncertain; earlier contankerous, perhaps derivation of Middle English contack, conteck “quarrel, contention,” from Anglo-French contek, formed on the models of contentious, rancorous

OTHER WORDS FROM cantankerous

can·tan·ker·ous·ly, adverbcan·tan·ker·ous·ness, noun

Words nearby cantankerous

Cantabrigian, Cantal, cantala, cantalever, cantaloupe, cantankerous, cantar, cantata, cantatrice, can't but, can't complain

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

How to use cantankerous in a sentence

If you’re dreading Thanksgiving with your cantankerous relatives, a pre-meal run could get you through the day.
Your last-minute training guide to dominating this year’s Turkey Trot|Claire Maldarelli|November 21, 2021|Popular-Science
The very things that make this the kind of book you could hand to a cop, a neighbor or a cantankerous uncle may make it unsatisfying for more sophisticated readers.
What you think you know about poverty is probably wrong|Rosa Brooks|March 19, 2021|Washington Post
To Chicago he was still two-fisted, hard-drinking, cantankerous.
The Stacks: John Schulian’s Classic Profile of Newspaper Columnist Mike Royko|John Schulian|January 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I still remember how disappointed I was by this cantankerous book.
The Smartest Book About Our Digital Age Was Published in 1929|Ted Gioia|January 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST

First up, a classic profile of the cantankerous but lovable Chicago newspaper columnist Mike Royko.
The Stacks: John Schulian’s Classic Profile of Newspaper Columnist Mike Royko|John Schulian|January 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The most dangerous animal to encounter when walking, I discovered, is not a lion but a cantankerous male buffalo.
Walking With Wildebeests: Exploring the Serengeti on Foot|Joanna Eede|July 9, 2013|DAILY BEAST
It was ugly, cantankerous, simple enough for any farmhand to understand and fix, and indomitable.
The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Henry Ford|Richard Snow|May 14, 2013|DAILY BEAST
As a rule even the most cantankerous women are placable after afternoon tea.
The Pit Town Coronet, Volume II (of 3)|Charles James Wills
It's no wonder he drinks, hitched up to a cantankerous old hyena like that.
Quin|Alice Hegan Rice
Some of the men I have to deal with are as bat-blind as they are cantankerous.
That Lass O' Lowrie's|Frances Hodgson Burnett
Every one recognises that cantankerous obstructiveness would only make matters worse, nay, absolutely intolerable.
America To-day, Observations and Reflections|William Archer
I turned away to pay off my taxi, the driver of which was very cantankerous and abusive over his fare.
The Poison Belt|Arthur Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for cantankerous

cantankerous

/ (kænˈtæŋkərəs) /

adjective

quarrelsome; irascible

Derived forms of cantankerous

cantankerously, adverbcantankerousness, noun

Word Origin for cantankerous

C18: perhaps from C14 (obsolete) conteckour a contentious person, from conteck strife, from Anglo-French contek, of obscure origin

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

cantankerous

Origin of cantankerous

OTHER WORDS FROM cantankerous

Words nearby cantankerous

Words related to cantankerous

How to use cantankerous in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cantankerous

Derived forms of cantankerous

Word Origin for cantankerous