dour

[door, dou^uhr, dou-er]

adjective

1. sullen; gloomy.

   The captain's dour look depressed us all.

   Synonyms: moody, sour, morose

2. severe; stern.

   His dour criticism made us regret having undertaken the job.

3. Scot.,  (of land) barren; rocky, infertile, or otherwise difficult or impossible to cultivate.

dour

/ ˈdaʊə, dʊə /

adjective

1. sullen

2. hard or obstinate

Other Word Forms

• dourly adverb
• dourness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of dour¹

1325–75; Middle English, from Latin dūrus dure ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of dour¹

C14: probably from Latin dūrus hard

Synonym Study

See glum.

Example Sentences

Target attempted to sweeten the impact of a mixed set of third-quarter earnings and a dour holiday season outlook by floating a new partnership with OpenAI.

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The index measures the sentiment of home builders, with readings less than 50 indicative of a dour outlook for the single-family housing market in the next six months.

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The index measures the sentiment of homebuilders, with readings less than 50 indicating a dour outlook for the single-family housing market in the next six months.

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The index measures the sentiment of homebuilders, with readings less than 50 indicating a dour outlook for the single-family housing market in the next six months.

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Yet, those facts are too often overshadowed by the dour predictions of the commentariat.

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Related Words

• bleak 
• glum 
• harsh 
• morose 
• sullen 
• surly