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
Oldman’s performance in the show has been widely praised and he’s earned both Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for playing the cantankerous head of Slough House, Jackson Lamb.
—
Keith Langston, People.com, 23 Mar. 2025
The trust's extensive provisions are just an example of Barnes' quirky and often cantankerous nature.
—Blake Gopnik, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
The trust's extensive provisions are just an example of Barnes' quirky and often cantankerous nature.
—Blake Gopnik, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Keith Langston, People.com, 23 Mar. 2025
The trust's extensive provisions are just an example of Barnes' quirky and often cantankerous nature.
—Blake Gopnik, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
The trust's extensive provisions are just an example of Barnes' quirky and often cantankerous nature.
—Blake Gopnik, Newsweek, 19 Mar. 2025
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
See All Example Sentences for cantankerous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cantankerous
Adjective
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Her tone is free-associative, irritable and rat-a-tat.—
Alexandra Jacobs,
New York Times,
1 June 2025
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When an owner is distracted or irritable from work stress, the dog notices.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
25 May 2025
Adjective
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Without Flagg, asking angry fans for more money may have sent Welts back into another round of retirement.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 June 2025
-
Mamdani’s victory fits the emerging pattern of angry and fed-up voters from across the spectrum, as some notable anti-establishment populists have swept to victory in the US and across the globe on both the left and the right.—
Time,
Time,
26 June 2025
Adjective
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Kitty: And grandpa, oh, who is like a lovely but ornery Irish man, Sean: takes one look at the Harry Krishnas, looks at dad like, looks at the Christians again.—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
11 June 2025
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But when Chief, the ornery stray, gets overruled into helping his pack assist a boy who’s crash-landed on their trash island, Cranston really nails it.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
12 June 2025
Adjective
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This is exactly the productive, surly, still-in-his-prime player this team needs down the middle.—
Scott Powers,
New York Times,
14 June 2025
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Rostov is exiled to the servants’ quarters in the attic, stripped of most of his possessions, and is kept under constant surveillance by a surly KGB operative (Björn Hlynur Haraldsson).—
Rob Salkowitz,
Forbes,
27 Feb. 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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Even though his bloodwork looked normal six months previously, sudden onset or acute renal failure can happen in an old dog for no apparent reason other than age and result in bilious vomiting.—
Dr. John De Jong,
Boston Herald,
8 June 2025
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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
Cite this Entry
“Cantankerous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cantankerous. Accessed 2 Jul. 2025.
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