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grinch

noun

ˈgrinch How to pronounce grinch (audio)
Definition of grinchnext
as in cynic
a person who spoils the pleasure of others accused the mayor of being a grinch after he cancelled the city's annual holiday parade for budgetary reasons

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of grinch However, a grinch mascot, who was on cleanup duty at the event, stepped in and saved the wedding, per WTAE. — Kimberlee Speakman, PEOPLE, 28 Aug. 2026 The nonprofit donated almost $200,000 to the church for the materials a grinch stole. — Dawn White, CBS News, 10 Dec. 2025 To play off the flavor of the candy, the grinch-green dough has a subtle cinnamon flavor of its own. — Alana Al-Hatlani, Southern Living, 30 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grinch
  1. cynic
  2. drag
  3. killjoy
  4. crab
  5. spoilsport
  6. complainer
  7. bore
  8. party pooper
Noun
  • Williams led the Bears to an NFC North title and a playoff victory last season, but some cynics think the Bears are due for a regression this season.
    — Dan Santaromita, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • That the earnestness the genre requires galls us cynics, who love to hide in our books, away from all those pesky bodies in the first place?
    — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of cynic
Noun
  • After the run that Lisa couldn’t complete, Whitney tracks her down at the bottom of the mountain to officially apologize for her drunken tirade against her at that drag brunch, and against all odds, Lisa is fully ready to hear her out.
    — Tom Smyth, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026
  • There are several stores along the main drag, including the whimsical Guerneville 5&10 filled with gifts, candy, greeting cards, art supplies and more.
    — Catherine Garcia, TheWeek, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of drag
Noun
  • In the end, at the risk of sounding like a killjoy, a real way to save the planet and save money is to just buy and produce less.
    — Kara McGrath, Allure, 22 Apr. 2026
  • Which poem, and why did the killjoys at the magazine turn it down?
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2026
Definition of killjoy
Noun
  • Then, the very next day, Mars will march into the courageous sign of Leo, trading the crab’s defensive and hyper-protective instincts for bold self-expression and a whole lot of swag!
    — Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Earlier this year, more than a hundred thousand bots joined a social network, Moltbook, and, within seventy-two hours, created a religion called Crustafarianism, which came to involve the worship of crabs.
    — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of crab
Noun
  • The first thing Sweetpea does, after ditching her spoilsport colleague at the hotel, is pay a visit to SwiftGC, a payment processor recently acquired by Tender.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 6 Feb. 2026
  • Granted, this might simply be an old-fashioned spoilsport way to view the market.
    — Michael Santoli, CNBC, 10 Jan. 2026
Definition of spoilsport
Noun
  • My ‘Deborah Vance Show senior writer’ persona was kind of a rude complainer with an incipient alcohol problem.
    — Merrill Markoe, Deadline, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Are they deluded into thinking that the complainers are just a squeaky wheel minority and the majority of fans are happy with it?
    — Jeremy Rutherford, New York Times, 13 July 2026
Definition of complainer
Noun
  • Snow recently did an in-depth shoot-out of quarter-bore cartridges, new and old.
    — John B. Snow, Outdoor Life, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Virtually all those trips involved hassle that was a bore to write about and just as boring to read.
    — Paul Theroux, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of bore
Noun
  • But none of the Premier League’s refs or growing cohort of specialist VARs revel in the role of party pooper.
    — Graham Scott, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
  • But in their quest to make history, the guests turned into party poopers.
    — The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Definition of party pooper

Browse Nearby Words

grin
grinch
grinches
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Cite this Entry

“Grinch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grinch. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

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