as in cantankerous
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cross-grained
Adjective
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The cantankerous Croatian lasted until November.—
James Horncastle,
New York Times,
2 June 2026 -
As our cantankerous lead, Molina harumphs lovably from scene to scene, conveying both his character’s indomitable will and the wretchedness of his grief.—
Graham Hillard,
The Washington Examiner,
31 May 2026
Adjective
-
The disagreeable object proved no match for the most fertile person in Montana.—
Jonathan Franzen,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
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This is because there is a meaningful difference between disagreeing and being disagreeable.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The American right, too, is in a shifting, querulous state.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2026
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In fact, the B-2 bombers were still in the air with hours to go before reaching home when Van Hollen issued his querulous statement.—
Chris Roemer,
Baltimore Sun,
5 Mar. 2026
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
Adjective
-
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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Leach also would publicly call out his players and could get ornery when questioned about his team’s shortcomings.—
Ralph D. Russo,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
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The rabbi is ornery, arrogant, sometimes cruel.—
Daniel Felsenthal,
Vulture,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Our protagonist, the surly and depressed writer Ohm, has been stuck on the ending to his book series featuring a conquistador lost in the desert with a young companion and a map trapped inside a bottle.—
Katie Walsh,
Twin Cities,
2 May 2026
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Our protagonist, the surly and depressed writer Ohm, has been stuck on the ending to his book series featuring a conquistador lost in the desert with a young companion and a map trapped inside a bottle.—
Katie Walsh,
Boston Herald,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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For the first time, that includes In Living Color vet Kim Wayans, going large as irascible hospital staffer Nurse Ratchett.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
4 June 2026
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No true irascible aging genius worth his salt is without a ready supply of white socks brightening up the chest of drawers.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Cross-grained.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cross-grained. Accessed 8 Jun. 2026.
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