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definitions

ill-natured

[il-ney-cherd]
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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ill-natured ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

having or showing an unkindly or unpleasant disposition.

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RELATED WORDS

catty, churlish, crabby, cross, crotchety, dirty, disagreeable, dyspeptic, hot-tempered, irritable, malevolent, malicious, mean, nasty, ornery, perverse, petulant, spiteful, sulky, sullen

Origin of ill-natured

First recorded in 1625–35
Related formsill-na·tured·ly, adverbill-na·tured·ness, noun

Synonyms for ill-natured

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR ill-natured ON THESAURUS.COM
cranky, petulant, sulky, morose, gloomy, sour. See cross.

Antonyms for ill-natured

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

Examples from the Web for ill-natured

Historical Examples of ill-natured

  • They would not trust my aunt without this ill-natured witness.

    Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)

    Samuel Richardson

  • Notwithstanding her action in this matter, Lisa was not an ill-natured or callous woman.

    A Zola Dictionary

    J. G. Patterson

  • She was surprised that anybody should be so ill-natured as he was.

    Is He Popenjoy?

    Anthony Trollope

  • She had understood well the ill-natured sarcasm of Miss Altifiorla.

    Kept in the Dark

    Anthony Trollope

  • This is an ill-natured statement to send all over the Baltic.

    Jane Austen, Her Life and Letters

    William Austen-Leigh and Richard Arthur Austen-Leigh

British Dictionary definitions for ill-natured

ill-natured

adjective

naturally unpleasant and mean
Derived Formsill-naturedly, adverbill-naturedness, 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