curmudgeon

[ker-muhj-uhn]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR curmudgeon ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a bad-tempered, difficult, cantankerous person.

Origin of curmudgeon

1570–80; unexplained; perhaps cur- representing cur

Related formscur·mudg·eon·ly, adjective

Synonyms for curmudgeon

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR curmudgeon ON THESAURUS.COM

grouch, crank, bear, sourpuss, crosspatch.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for curmudgeon

Chris Messina did such great work this year making a curmudgeon charming on The Mindy Project.
Emmys 2014: Who Will and Who Should Be Nominated|Kevin Fallon|July 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In person, Messina is a bit like Danny, minus the curmudgeon qualities.
Chris Messina Isn’t Just Dr. Castellano on ‘The Mindy Project’|Melissa Leon|April 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I don't think he is a curmudgeon, I think he just likes challenging climatic conditions.
Running Commentary from the Jubilee Pageant|Tom Sykes|June 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
By the time of my last visit, about a year ago, Maurice had become almost as famous for being a curmudgeon as he was as an artist.
Maurice Sendak Is Remembered Fondly by Author and Filmmaker William Joyce|William Joyce|May 9, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Don't pass all the weary Winter with Curmudgeon, who will marry you to an old bag of gold.
Madeline Payne, the Detective's Daughter|Lawrence L. Lynch
Curmudgeon, kur-muj′un, n. an avaricious, ill-natured fellow: a miser.
Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary (part 1 of 4: A-D)|Various
He only accepted the hospitality of Mr. Long lest he should be accused of being a curmudgeon if he refused.
A Nest of Linnets|Frank Frankfort Moore
"Your father is a curmudgeon," declared the old woman, for the more she looked at Gabriel, the more she loved him.
Jewel's Story Book|Clara Louise Burnham
Degas is amiability itself compared with this curmudgeon of genius.
Unicorns|James Huneker

British Dictionary definitions for curmudgeon

curmudgeon

noun

a surly or miserly person

Derived Formscurmudgeonly, adjective

Word Origin for curmudgeon

C16: of unknown 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

Word Origin and History for curmudgeon

1570s, of unknown origin; the suggestion, based on a misreading of a garbled note from Johnson, that it is from French coeur mechant "evil heart" is not taken seriously; the first syllable may be cur "dog." Liberman says the word "must have been borrowed from Gaelic (and references muigean "disagreeable person"), with variant spelling of intensive prefix ker-. Related: Curmudgeonly.

curmudgeon

noun

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Origin of curmudgeon

Synonyms for curmudgeon

Examples from the Web for curmudgeon

curmudgeon

noun

Word Origin for curmudgeon