ornery

or·nery

adj
\ˈȯr-nə-rē, ˈär-; ˈȯrn-rē, ˈärn-\

or·neri·eror·neri·est

Definition of ORNERY

: having an irritable disposition : cantankerous

— or·neri·ness noun

Examples of ORNERY

1. I'm getting more and more ornery in my old age.
2. <an ornery old man who always yells at the neighborhood kids to keep off his lawn>
3. Based on the best-selling book by Laura Hillenbrand, Seabiscuit tells the true story of an ornery, undersize, beaten-up Thoroughbred who becomes a champion in the 1930s. —Lev Grossman, Time, 21 July 2003
4. Critics have compared his work to Faulkner's. And like Faulkner, McCarthy is an acquired taste as well as a palate cleanser. He's a stubborn, ornery writer, known for his ornate sentences, arcane vocabulary, casual disregard for standard punctuation and untranslated bits of foreign dialogue that offer little in the way of a narrative compass to guide readers along. —Sara Mosle, New York Times Book Review, 17 May 1998
5. Telling her that would have been an invitation to getting my head chopped off, because she was a mean, ornery number until the day she died. —John Gregory Dunne, Harp, 1989

Origin of ORNERY

alteration of ordinary

First Known Use: 1816

Related to ORNERY

Synonyms: acid, bearish, bilious, bloody-minded [chiefly British], cantankerous, disagreeable, dyspeptic, ill-humored, ill-natured, ill–tempered, splenetic, surly

Antonyms: amiable, good-humored, good-natured, good-tempered

Related Words: choleric, crabby, cranky, crotchety, fussy, grouchy, grumpy, querulous; irascible, irritable, peevish, peppery, petulant, quick-tempered, short-tempered, snappish, snippy, testy, touchy; argumentative, contentious, contrary, cussed; angry, exasperated, indignant, irate, mad, upset, uptight; depressed, dour, glum, morose, sullen; anal, old-maidish, schoolmarmish

Near Antonyms: agreeable, amicable, congenial, friendly, pleasant; benign, gentle, kind, nice, sweet; bubbly, cheerful, cheery, effervescent, exuberant, high-spirited, joyful, lighthearted, lively, vivacious; content, glad, happy; calm, placid, serene; long-suffering, patient, tolerant

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