grouchier; grouchiest
: given to grumbling : peevish
grouchily adverb
grouchiness noun

Examples of grouchy in a Sentence

I get grouchy when I'm tired. a lack of sleep would make anyone grouchy
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Leading up to kickoff of Belichick’s debut at Chapel Hill, college football, this community and certainly the TV networks were thrilled with the prospect of this grouchy old man turning an irrelevant football team into something worth watching. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Sep. 2025 When Vivian Powers went to foster a new kitten, she was pulled in by a cat's grouchy face. Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 July 2025 Frye's comic foil was a grouchy widower played by George Gaynes, a character actor with credits going back 20 years who had just scored memorable roles in Tootsie and the Police Academy series. Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 14 May 2025 The energy of the performances — from Aduba’s deadpan forthrightness to the more antic work by comedians like Marino and Jane Curtin (as the president’s grouchy mother-in-law) — and the rat-a-tat style of all the conversations carries the day. Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 20 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for grouchy

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1895, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of grouchy was circa 1895

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Cite this Entry

“Grouchy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/grouchy. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

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