as in irritable
having or showing a habitually bad temper
a cantankerous old woman who insisted that nothing should ever be allowed to change
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cantankerous
Lori Tan Chinn charms as a cantankerous Chinatown grandmother, while Jamie Lee Curtis makes a memorable meal of her single scene as a mob boss.
—
Beandrea July, IndieWire, 28 Jan. 2026
Ornery, bizarre, cantankerous, brilliant, talented, stubborn—all characters from our lives.
—Literary Hub, 16 Jan. 2026
In Christmas Vacation, Marshall portrayed Ellen's cantankerous father, Art Smith.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 26 Dec. 2025
Iran’s cantankerous elite came together, and the public remained passive.
—Ray Takeyh, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Beandrea July, IndieWire, 28 Jan. 2026
Ornery, bizarre, cantankerous, brilliant, talented, stubborn—all characters from our lives.
—Literary Hub, 16 Jan. 2026
In Christmas Vacation, Marshall portrayed Ellen's cantankerous father, Art Smith.
—Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 26 Dec. 2025
Iran’s cantankerous elite came together, and the public remained passive.
—Ray Takeyh, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cantankerous
Adjective
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From the dramatic adolescent to the unpredictable PMS-ing woman to the irritable menopausal crone, unattractive stereotypes of women ruled by their hormones abound.—
Patricia Bencivenga,
STAT,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Caroly is immediately affected, glued to the TV; John, suddenly irritable, retreats.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The 72-year-old coach walked toward Staley in the final seconds of the game before the two had an angry exchange, with assistants having to get in between them.—
David Brandt,
Chicago Tribune,
4 Apr. 2026
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When you're stressed or angry, your cortisol levels rise, which can have adverse effects on your heart, metabolism, and immune system.—
Sharon Basaraba,
Verywell Health,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The rabbi is ornery, arrogant, sometimes cruel.—
Daniel Felsenthal,
Vulture,
26 Mar. 2026
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For ornery toddlers, who want to do everything themselves, Rao suggests giving them their own toothbrush to use while parents brush their teeth with a second one right alongside them.—
Sarah Lindenfeld Hall,
Popular Science,
11 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
And who could blame these romantic dreamers for wanting to cast aside the surly bonds of Earth to visit the pale beauty of our cratered satellite?—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The seven-time Most Valuable Player, a reluctant and at times surly interview subject during his days with the Giants and Pittsburgh Pirates, showed his more excited and expansive side.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Another bill would put regulations around data centers, although lawmakers in the final days stripped out some of the language that tech companies found disagreeable.—
Garrett Shanley,
Miami Herald,
13 Mar. 2026
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The day was cold and disagreeable, disappointing those who hoped for warm, sunny weather for the contest between Bogardus and Carver.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
24 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Better is Danny Elfman’s spartan and fraught score, particularly the dyspeptic drums.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Jan. 2026
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But Kael sensed in her less dyspeptic moments that there was something special about Redford.—
Stephen Galloway,
HollywoodReporter,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Meanwhile, the commentator and controversialist Piers Morgan, an obsessively close observer and relentless critic of Meghan, inevitably waded in with his usual splenetic views.—
Sarah Lyall,
New York Times,
17 Sep. 2022
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And while there is enough splenetic wit and manic detail to generate obsessive fandom (entire sections of Web sites are dedicated to deciphering just what Kenny is mumbling), subjects like alien abduction, genetic engineering, and Kathie Lee are hardly original targets for satire.—
Chris Norris,
SPIN,
13 Aug. 2022
Adjective
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Sun shrinking and getting hotter; everything bilious, oxygenless, not great for living.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Nov. 2025
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Minaj’s bilious flurry is possibly related to claims that she is owed between $100 to 200 million related to her stake in Tidal, the music streaming service launched and spearheaded by Jay-Z in 2015 and was sold to Jack Dorsey’s company Square for $297 million in 2021.—
Andrew Flanagan,
Variety,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cantankerous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cantankerous. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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