1
as in coward
a person who shows a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger
denounced as curs those police officers who deserted their posts during the hurricane and its aftermath
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bastard
a person whose behavior is offensive to others
only a cur would abandon friends in their time of need
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of cur
Since switching to bears, Propst and Starks have accumulated a sound, reliable pack of bear dogs-redbones, Walkers, mountain curs and black-and-tans.
—
John McCoy, Outdoor Life, 12 Nov. 2025
Overlooked time and again, the 7-year-old black mouth cur mix has finally been given a new lease on life thanks to Lakeshore PAWS, a nonprofit animal rescue based in Valparaiso, Indiana.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
His Orlok is more feral and red-blooded than previous iterations, appearing swathed in ursine furs and accompanied by mangy curs.
—Celia Mattison, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
His arch nemesis, Richard Nixon, had fled the White House like a diseased cur after the Watergate scandal and in his disappearance from the political scene, Thompson lost perhaps his greatest muse.
—Rory Feehan, SPIN, 9 Nov. 2023
On a blustery Saturday afternoon in April, 18 of 25 groups there had dogs off a leash, including this reporter with her black mouth cur mix, Archer.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Aug. 2023
In 1957, four mountain music players from Georgia, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee discovered a shared love for the old mountain curs, and organized a breeding effort that saved the original mountain cur from extinction.
—Kyle Wintersteen, Field & Stream, 30 Jan. 2023
Behind the bar, the enormous portrait of the family’s late dog Rio — a black mouth cur for whom the restaurant is named — watches over the room.
—Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 21 Dec. 2020
Pop it into first gear, low range, and this cur will claw halfway up the Washington Monument with no driver at the wheel.
—John Phillips, Car and Driver, 24 Mar. 2020
John McCoy, Outdoor Life, 12 Nov. 2025
Overlooked time and again, the 7-year-old black mouth cur mix has finally been given a new lease on life thanks to Lakeshore PAWS, a nonprofit animal rescue based in Valparaiso, Indiana.
—Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Sep. 2025
His Orlok is more feral and red-blooded than previous iterations, appearing swathed in ursine furs and accompanied by mangy curs.
—Celia Mattison, Vulture, 27 Dec. 2024
His arch nemesis, Richard Nixon, had fled the White House like a diseased cur after the Watergate scandal and in his disappearance from the political scene, Thompson lost perhaps his greatest muse.
—Rory Feehan, SPIN, 9 Nov. 2023
On a blustery Saturday afternoon in April, 18 of 25 groups there had dogs off a leash, including this reporter with her black mouth cur mix, Archer.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 4 Aug. 2023
In 1957, four mountain music players from Georgia, Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee discovered a shared love for the old mountain curs, and organized a breeding effort that saved the original mountain cur from extinction.
—Kyle Wintersteen, Field & Stream, 30 Jan. 2023
Behind the bar, the enormous portrait of the family’s late dog Rio — a black mouth cur for whom the restaurant is named — watches over the room.
—Sarah Blaskovich, Dallas News, 21 Dec. 2020
Pop it into first gear, low range, and this cur will claw halfway up the Washington Monument with no driver at the wheel.
—John Phillips, Car and Driver, 24 Mar. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cur
Noun
-
Please do not take the coward’s way.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
31 Jan. 2026
-
And Trump calls ’em almost like cowards.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Small dogs aren’t always cheaper — a Chihuahua costs nearly $29,649.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
IndyStar,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The ad oozes cuteness, featuring an adorable baby, a charming house and a faithful family dog.—
Aimee Picchi,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Smarmy jerks can get obscenely wealthy in this country just by managing other people’s money.—
Gilad Edelman,
The Atlantic,
7 Feb. 2026
-
The food shies away from the typical — no crab rangoon here — for finger foods that harken to cuisines outside the South Pacific, like Jamaican style jerk shrimp skewers ($18) and salmon ceviche ($16).—
Sean Timberlake,
Sacbee.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The judge in front of me spent most of the time looking at the ground, leading ace AP boxing writer Ed Schuyler to write an entire story about the clown.—
Nick Canepa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
-
Deep cherry red, black, and white come together to create a whimsical world of dice, cards, sad clowns, and a ticking pocketwatch.—
Samantha Brash,
InStyle,
8 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
But toads and frogs are also prey animals for owls, hawks, skunks, opossums, and raccoons.—
Michelle Mastro,
Martha Stewart,
6 Feb. 2026
-
At night, the desert comes alive with coyote howls, prowling skunks and the possibility of larger cats or black bears nearby.—
Joan Meiners,
AZCentral.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Home life seems to be a joy to be around too when Robbie recalled a time when the couple had to face snakes—one of Ackerley’s biggest fears.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
12 Feb. 2026
-
Skiers can get the latest snow report with a touch of a button on their phones these days, but nothing beats watching snow pile up on a traditional snow snake, which is why Colorado’s ski resorts keep them around — and film them with 24-hour webcams.—
The Know,
Denver Post,
11 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Early mouse and rat experiments suggested that something interesting was going on beyond simple calorie restriction.—
The New York Times News Service Syndicate,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Health advocacy groups such as the Center for Science in the Public Interest have long urged consumers to avoid products containing BHA because some studies have indicated that the chemical causes cancer in rats, mice and hamsters.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cur.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cur. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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