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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Recent Examples of cantankerous
But one favorite will not suit up - Phil Dunster, who played talented yet cantankerous pretty-boy goal scorer, Jamie Tartt.
—
Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 14 Mar. 2025
Hackman's criminal mastermind was wily, vain, cantankerous, and a bit too sure of himself.
—David Morgan, CBS News, 27 Feb. 2025
The membership must have been particularly cantankerous this year, since only four players – Gates, Eric Allen, Jared Allen and Sterling Sharpe – were selected.
—Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 7 Feb. 2025
What to Know Coughenour, 83, has a reputation for being a tough and cantankerous judge.
—Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 14 Mar. 2025
Hackman's criminal mastermind was wily, vain, cantankerous, and a bit too sure of himself.
—David Morgan, CBS News, 27 Feb. 2025
The membership must have been particularly cantankerous this year, since only four players – Gates, Eric Allen, Jared Allen and Sterling Sharpe – were selected.
—Jim Alexander, Orange County Register, 7 Feb. 2025
What to Know Coughenour, 83, has a reputation for being a tough and cantankerous judge.
—Barbara A. Perry, Newsweek, 27 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cantankerous
Adjective
-
It is believed to reduce pain and inflammation, and has been used for treatment of back pain, high blood pressure, arthritis, migraines, and irritable bowel disease.—
Anna Cafolla,
Vogue,
4 Apr. 2025
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And even in what was a stilted match played in an increasingly irritable atmosphere, Rogers and Tielemans delivered with an assist each.—
Jacob Tanswell,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Democrats were particularly angry about a last-minute Republican amendment that allowed the sale of huge chunks of public land in Nevada and Utah.—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
9 May 2025
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That's the tipping point, and Austin breaks up the bromance, leaving Craig lost and angry and eager to prove himself as a cool dude worth hanging out with.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
9 May 2025
Adjective
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An ornery Ball Arena audience erupted when its team somehow grasped a 71-69 lead.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
9 May 2025
-
Image Our collective longing to connect with animals is evident in the viral popularity of animal celebrities on social media — who can resist Pesto the chubby baby king penguin, Hua Hua the panda or Moo Deng, the ornery baby pygmy hippo?—
Alexandra Alter,
New York Times,
23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Requests are taken for the next amendment, and a surly, very cool Matt (Goggins) has a one-word answer: guns.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
11 May 2025
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Only this time, the cheerleader and the zombie are camp counselors for a group of surly vampires.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
22 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Befriending Cressida Cowper is a respectable exercise in recognizing biases, but the pair’s interactions are as disagreeable as those bangs.—
Zoe Haylock,
Vulture,
16 May 2024
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If Alex has a bit more credibility, not being as intractable in her positions, both have a tendency to come off as disagreeable in their incessant bickering and self-righteousness.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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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
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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
Adjective
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Under Nézet-Séguin, the musicians do the job spectacularly, releasing all those bilious harmonies and seething rhythms in an unbroken two-hour spasm of excitement.—
Justin Davidson,
Vulture,
30 Apr. 2025
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And Emily’s side of the family isn't much better, represented by her mean, bilious aunt (Allison Janney, herself no slouch in the hissing-authority department) and her boozy mother (Elizabeth Perkins, replacing Jean Smart from the first film).—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
30 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cantankerous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cantankerous. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
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