as in vulgar
lacking in refinement or good taste
at office gatherings his lowbrow humor often embarrassed his coworkers
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in philistine
a person who is chiefly interested in material comfort and is hostile or indifferent to art and culture
the town's lowbrows think that the school's music program is a complete waste of taxpayers' money
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lowbrow
Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 20 Aug. 2025
And lo, the high-low concept was born: a club that would give its members permission to dip into deeply lowbrow territory, and then count upon the next choice to hoist us out of the muck.
—Vogue, 29 July 2025
Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2025
Who says the eyebrow and the lowbrow don’t mix?
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lowbrow
Adjective
His social media posts appear in ALL CAPS accompanied by lowbrow nicknames, perceived as a Trump hallmark.
—Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 20 Aug. 2025
And lo, the high-low concept was born: a club that would give its members permission to dip into deeply lowbrow territory, and then count upon the next choice to hoist us out of the muck.
—Vogue, 29 July 2025
Noun
Highbrow, lowbrow, and everything in-between, Shudder’s marathon birthday party from 2025 should be remembered like an axe to the forehead.
—Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2025
Who says the eyebrow and the lowbrow don’t mix?
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lowbrow
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lowbrow
Adjective
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Who decides what’s decorous and what’s vulgar?—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
25 Oct. 2025
-
The president has been targeting Jeffries online with offensive and vulgar memes since the pair first had an unsuccessful sit-down meeting in the Oval Office just before the shutdown.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
9 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Each project presented at MIA is picked with a genuine desire for these works to come to the fore, not by crass commercial considerations.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
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Free speech covers the jokes, the satire, the parodies—even the dumb, crass, or offensive ones.—
Lizz Winstead,
Time,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Combined with not intervening too often, this will minimize the number of rude responses.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
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Basil, of course, is far from perfect, a rude, neurotic, accident-prone manager who insults guests, hides his gambling winnings from his wife and organizes an elaborate impersonation of her when his surprise anniversary party backfires.—
Rhett Bartlett,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The most common diagnoses included disorders in speech and motor function development and autism.—
Deidre McPhillips,
CNN Money,
31 Oct. 2025
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But the most common way the demons attacked was by lulling their victims into sleep.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
31 Oct. 2025
Noun
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This guy might be single-handedly responsible for generations of people having an irrational fear of clowns.—
Steven Thrash,
Entertainment Weekly,
24 Oct. 2025
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Unlike past attempts at fictionalizing his life, Macmanus barely touches on the fact that Gacy had a hobby of dressing up like a clown, and doesn’t show any actual murders in the series.—
Elisabeth Garber-Paul,
Rolling Stone,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Big Oil leaders Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and Shell continue to hike their crude oil production volumes from West Texas’s Permian Basin to the Gulf of Mexico to deepwater Guyana despite concerns of a rising global oil glut as OPEC nations keep exporting more barrels each month.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
31 Oct. 2025
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Burke gave the only 9 on a panel full of 10s, prompting the crude call out.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Short and/or fine hair sets faster than long, thick, coarse hair.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
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Start with turbinado sugar, which has a coarse texture and a caramel-like flavor that complements coffee beautifully.—
Elizabeth Fogarty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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That is $45,540 a year, meaning rent alone would take up roughly 54% of gross income—well above the standard 30% affordability threshold.—
Eleanor Pringle,
Fortune,
3 Nov. 2025
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That ambition is now known as Shelby Oaks, which, after two weeks in the marketplace, is headed toward profitability with a $4 million-plus gross worldwide.—
Brian Davids,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Lowbrow.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lowbrow. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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