dour
[doo r, douuh r, dou-er]
- sullen; gloomy: The captain's dour look depressed us all.
- severe; stern: His dour criticism made us regret having undertaken the job.
- Scot. (of land) barren; rocky, infertile, or otherwise difficult or impossible to cultivate.
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Origin of dour
Synonyms
See more synonyms for dour on Thesaurus.com1. morose, sour, moody. See glum.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for dourly
Historical Examples
Balt Haer, who had obviously already had a few, looked at him dourly.
MercenaryDallas McCord Reynolds
"Leonid Plekhanov is no longer with us," Chessman said dourly.
AdaptationDallas McCord Reynolds
"Your uncle is only forty-five and in his prime," said Aunt Augusta dourly.
Lucy Maud Montgomery Short Stories, 1909 to 1922Lucy Maud Montgomery
"He will find it best in this instance," says Saxham dourly.
The Dop DoctorClotilde Inez Mary Graves
"—Incorporated information and I can depend on it," said Bors dourly.
Talents, IncorporatedWilliam Fitzgerald Jenkins
dour
- sullen
- hard or obstinate
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Word Origin
C14: probably from Latin dūrus hard
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for dourly
dour
adj.
mid-14c., "severe," from Scottish and northern England dialect, probably from Latin durus "hard" (see endure); sense of "gloomy, sullen" is late 15c.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper