GRUFFLY Synonyms: 117 Similar and Opposite Words

gruffly

adverb

Definition of gruffly

as in brusquely

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Dissimilar Words

as in grimly

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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 gruffly Rose’s relationship with her father, too, is unusual in its unresolved jaggedness, while Sisto’s gruffly on-edge performance points to a deeper well of adult pain in Wes that his daughter cannot yet manage or comprehend. — Guy Lodge, Variety, 8 June 2026 Chief among the familiar faces is Aaron Taylor-Johnson as the stoic, gruffly professional explosives-disposal expert Major Will Tranter, who shows up at a construction site in the heart of London where an unexploded, 1,000-pound WWII bomb has just been found. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for gruffly

Adverb

Léo’s tenderly nostalgic reminiscences of past love affairs are slapped down by Emma, who brusquely dismisses his pleasant recollections as mere male projection.

— Jay Weissberg, Variety, 11 Sep. 2026
Yet, White House officials told me, Biden sometimes brusquely dismissed the views of both men, raising his voice as though berating children.

— David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 20 July 2026

Definition of brusquely

Adverb

In that film, a director famous for comedies yearns to make grimly earnest movies about the Depression, but learns that what people in dire straits crave is the distraction and release of comedy.

— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 15 Oct. 2026
Gun purchases made in response to events have been shown, grimly, to lead to still more accidental gun deaths.

— Vishal R. Patel, Time, 9 Aug. 2026

Definition of grimly

Adverb

Juliette later makes a stop to see Shirley, who is still being unreasonably pouty about her amnesiac friend not remembering her — and is, again, curtly dismissive of Juliette’s search for Lukas.

— Noel Murray, Vulture, 17 July 2026
But Ruben curtly responds that the only real homophobe is Niall himself.

— Barry Levitt, Time, 29 May 2026

Definition of curtly

Adverb

The charges have been sharply reduced since May and many residents have been seeing a credit on their monthly bills as the public benefits charges have been temporarily eliminated.

— Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 28 Oct. 2026
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has sharply criticized the diesel deal.

— Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of sharply

Adverb

Still, the momentum, by his forecast, strongly favors the Democrats.

— Shawn Tully, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
What famous physicists thought The debate between determinism and indeterminism in quantum mechanics has split the physicists into two groups that stand strongly by their views.

— Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of strongly

Adverb

But, after spending months touting the benefits that Warner assets would bring, Netflix abruptly pulled out of the auction in late February when Paramount’s Ellison upped his company’s offer.

— Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2026
After that war had ended, the period of Democratic hegemony under President Franklin Roosevelt also ended, and abruptly, with the results of the midterm of 1946.

— Ron Elving, NPR, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of abruptly

Adverb

Though based on the visuals of the past, his output is determinedly contemporary.

— Laird Borrelli-Persson, Vogue, 25 Sep. 2026
Blue-collar Ho-seok (Sul), a man traumatized by losing his factory job after a workers’ strike, lives a quiet life with his determinedly optimistic wife, Mi-ok (Jeon).

— Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of determinedly

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gruffly

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“Gruffly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gruffly. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of gruffly

adverb

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