as in boorish
having or showing crudely insensitive or impolite manners
it would be churlish for any dinner guest to express anything but gratitude for his host's generous hospitality
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Recent Examples of churlish
The churlish comments appeared to have come from conservative activists, or from bots on social media that generate partisan messages, still chafing that Burrows ascended to the speaker's desk with the support of more Democratic House members than Republicans.
—
John C. Moritz, Austin American Statesman, 30 July 2025
And refusing to congratulate his SIL is just churlish.
—Stephanie Guerilus, People.com, 21 June 2025
Marty, meanwhile, hollow-eyed and churlish about straying from their objective, seems haunted with guilt after a recent stint in jail for setting a building on fire.
—Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2025
Chinese anger was displayed again in the churlish treatment of visiting Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in July when, apart from other indignities, the Chinese Foreign Ministry publicly released its list of demands to Washington while her meeting was still underway.
—Danny Russel, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2021
See All Example Sentences for churlish
John C. Moritz, Austin American Statesman, 30 July 2025
And refusing to congratulate his SIL is just churlish.
—Stephanie Guerilus, People.com, 21 June 2025
Marty, meanwhile, hollow-eyed and churlish about straying from their objective, seems haunted with guilt after a recent stint in jail for setting a building on fire.
—Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2025
Chinese anger was displayed again in the churlish treatment of visiting Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman in July when, apart from other indignities, the Chinese Foreign Ministry publicly released its list of demands to Washington while her meeting was still underway.
—Danny Russel, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2021
See All Example Sentences for churlish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for churlish
Adjective
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Depicting Americans as arrogant, loud, boorish and demeaning of other cultures, the term has stuck and is still mentioned 60-plus years later.—
Jenny Peters,
Oc Register,
4 Aug. 2025
-
Lownie’s book chronicles other pretty outrageous, boorish behavior by Andrew, both in the company of his pedophile friend, the late American financier Jeffrey Epstein, and on his own.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Societal neglect will inevitably breed a coarseness in manner and language, exhibited by the uncouth nature of the Chiefs’ players as well as the public watching them.—
Vikram Murthi,
IndieWire,
19 Aug. 2025
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If Netanyahu loses the next elections, his downfall would bring a wave of relief among many Israelis at home and abroad for removing the uncouth populists and religious fundamentalists who openly broadcast their intentions to destroy and starve the population of Gaza and annex the territory.—
DAHLIA SCHEINDLIN,
Foreign Affairs,
13 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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This was like loutish English tourists turning up unannounced and urinating in the holy water.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
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And Gandolfini, who died of a heart attack in 2013 at age 51, was the show’s tempestuous soul, playing a loutish killer with a quick temper and sad eyes.—
Chris Vognar,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The recent rash of CEOs Gone Wild is arguably even stupider than commonplace fraud, and a troubling sign that there continues to be a slippery slope of accountability for C-Suite leadership.—
Ian Chaffee,
Fortune,
5 Sep. 2025
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The accounts team logs in right on time, and the stupid dance of platitudes that precedes every meeting at every company around the world begins.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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In part, because there was something fascinating about the clownish way their once cutting-edge images no longer fit.—
IndieWire Staff,
IndieWire,
16 Aug. 2025
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Joining Proctor in court was Meatball Morrissey’s clownish prosecutor, Adam Lally.—
Howie Carr,
Boston Herald,
6 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Private ownership is eliminated with the goal of all goods being equally shared in a classless society.—
Marley Malenfant,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
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The rowdy responses of the classless crowd were intolerable.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
10 June 2025
Adjective
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In interviews, Candy, who struggled with his weight for much of his life, had to deal with the press making rude comments about his size.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
4 Sep. 2025
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This question becomes thornier once Dorotea visits Rocca in prison, finding her rude and abrasive though not irrational.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The book is filled with vulgar pictures, with many faces blacked out, and messages both handwritten and typed from well-wishers for Epstein’s 50th birthday.—
Joey Garrison,
USA Today,
9 Sep. 2025
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The biopic is the vulgar but necessary tribute inherently populist cinema pays to more traditional, higher-brow art.—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Churlish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/churlish. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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