Synonyms of vulgar

vulgar

adjective

ˈvəl-gər 

1

as in low

belonging to the class of people of low social or economic rank

paintings that appeal to vulgar tastes

Synonyms & Similar Words

• low
• ignoble
• plebeian
• humble
• proletarian
• lower-class
• inferior
• low-life
• lumpen
• unwashed
• common
• lowly
• poor
• mean
• lowborn
• bourgeois
• prole
• baseborn
• middle-class
• simple
• plain
• working-class
• déclassé
• downscale
• down-market

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• aristocratic
• high
• noble
• great
• genteel
• lofty
• gentle
• upper-class
• patrician
• grand
• upper-crust
• prominent
• eminent
• notable
• highborn
• illustrious
• highbred
• blue-blooded
• wellborn

2

as in obscene

depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society

a warning about the movie's vulgar language

Synonyms & Similar Words

• obscene
• pornographic
• foul
• nasty
• dirty
• filthy
• gross
• crude
• suggestive
• indecent
• offensive
• unacceptable
• profane
• lewd
• obnoxious
• raunchy
• bawdy
• unpleasant
• disgusting
• coarse
• naughty
• lascivious
• ribald
• blue
• trashy
• smutty
• impure
• undesirable
• unprintable
• abusive
• unwanted
• locker-room
• wanton
• X-rated
• stag
• gutter
• porny
• infamous
• broad
• salacious
• wicked
• perverted
• indecorous
• indelicate
• scatological
• objectionable
• racy
• unbecoming
• depraved
• immodest
• repulsive
• soft
• repugnant
• revolting
• loathsome
• risqué
• earthy
• salty
• perverse
• low
• distasteful
• unwelcome
• coarse-grained
• kinky
• abhorrent
• gamy
• off
• barnyard
• off-color
• exceptionable
• repellent
• reprehensible
• scurrilous
• censurable
• louche
• atrocious
• blamable
• blameworthy
• debasing
• hard-core
• soft-core

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• wholesome
• clean
• prudish
• puritanical
• decent
• polite
• proper
• correct
• Victorian
• staid
• genteel
• decorous
• prim
• respectable
• acceptable
• innocuous
• nice
• appropriate
• inoffensive
• desirable
• priggish
• pleasant
• agreeable
• G-rated
• suitable
• nonobscene
• welcome
• pure
• pleasing
• straitlaced
• seemly
• becoming
• meet
• perfect
• fit
• virginal
• immaculate
• spotless
• endorsed
• approved
• sanctioned

3

as in general

held by or applicable to a majority of the people

the vulgar opinion is that the nation is in decline

Synonyms & Similar Words

• general
• prevailing
• popular
• public
• overall
• common
• unanimous
• predominant
• majority
• usual
• received
• ruling
• present
• dominant
• current
• universal
• typical
• contemporary
• characteristic
• familiar
• prevalent
• pervasive
• widespread
• everyday
• pop
• communal
• well-known
• rife
• preponderant
• household
• shared
• pandemic

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• uncommon
• unusual
• strange
• rare
• unknown
• special
• unpopular
• peculiar
• unique
• distinctive
• personal
• individual
• private
• separate
• idiosyncratic
• especial
• singular
• nonpublic

4

as in crass

lacking in refinement or good taste

vulgar behavior shown by someone who's made a lot of money and wants everyone to know it

Synonyms & Similar Words

• crass
• rude
• crude
• coarse
• common
• gross
• uncouth
• rough
• clumsy
• uncultured
• tasteless
• lowbrow
• unpolished
• unrefined
• rugged
• raffish
• low
• uncultivated
• insensible
• illiberal
• ill-bred
• rough-hewn
• boorish
• ungentlemanly
• clownish
• loutish
• roughneck
• indelicate
• thoughtless
• churlish
• cloddish
• insensitive
• incult
• lowbred
• rustic
• unsophisticated
• inconsiderate
• lumpish
• oafish
• lubberly
• barbarous
• uncivilized
• tacky
• barbaric
• inelegant
• provincial
• unmannerly
• countrified
• graceless
• unmannered
• mannerless
• animallike

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• smooth
• civilized
• cultured
• tasteful
• genteel
• polished
• aristocratic
• refined
• cultivated
• elegant
• patrician
• courtly
• graceful
• well-bred
• restrained
• sensitive
• thoughtful
• gracious
• sophisticated
• ultrarefined
• considerate
• urbane
• citified

5

as in colloquial

used in or suitable for speech and not formal writing

Latin was once the language of scholars, and English the vulgar language used by the common people

Synonyms & Similar Words

• colloquial
• vernacular
• informal
• nonliterary
• unliterary
• dialectical
• nonformal
• slang
• conversational
• dialectal
• uneducated
• ungrammatical
• nonstandard
• unbookish
• substandard
• slangy
• incorrect
• regional
• unlearned
• nongrammatical

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• literary
• formal
• standard
• learned
• bookish
• proper
• correct
• grammatical
• genteel
• educated
• undialectical

Synonym Chooser

How is the word vulgar different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of vulgar are coarse, gross, obscene, and ribald. While all these words mean "offensive to good taste or morals," vulgar often implies boorishness or ill-breeding.

a loud vulgar belch

When is it sensible to use coarse instead of vulgar?

While the synonyms coarse and vulgar are close in meaning, coarse implies roughness, rudeness, or crudeness of spirit, behavior, or language.

found the coarse humor of coworkers offensive

When might gross be a better fit than vulgar?

The synonyms gross and vulgar are sometimes interchangeable, but gross implies extreme coarseness and insensitiveness.

gross eating habits

In what contexts can obscene take the place of vulgar?

While in some cases nearly identical to vulgar, obscene applies to anything strongly repulsive to the sense of decency and propriety especially in sexual matters.

obscene language not allowed on the air

Where would ribald be a reasonable alternative to vulgar?

In some situations, the words ribald and vulgar are roughly equivalent. However, ribald applies to what is amusingly or picturesquely vulgar or irreverent or mildly indecent.

entertained the campers with ribald folk songs

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of vulgar

Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor’s biographer Andrew Lownie shared a vulgar pickup line that the former prince allegedly used while trying to pick up women. —Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 28 May 2026

Since then, there have been claims of gunfire and a drone used to disrupt the center's operations; vulgar name-calling online targeting Seymour and his wife; and the occasional middle finger raised in passing by other neighbors who have also become involved. —Dana Hedgpeth The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 24 May 2026

Death penalty states generally allow last statements from the execution chamber, but Texas catalogs the prisoners’ last words online, except for vulgar and racist language or what sounds unintelligible. —Erik Ortiz, NBC news, 20 May 2026

Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong apologized for using vulgar language in a heated exchange with a fan during Sunday’s loss to the Chicago White Sox. —Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 19 May 2026