gruff
AdjectiveUS[gruhf]/ɡrʌf/1 syllable
Open English WordNet
Adjective (2)gruffer, gruffest
- brusque and surly and forbidding“crusty remarks”“a crusty old man”“his curmudgeonly temper”“gruff manner”“a gruff reply”Synonyms: crustycurmudgeonlyill-humoredill-humouredOpposite good-naturedSimilar ill-natured
- deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion“gruff voices”“the dog's gruff barking”“hoarse cries”“makes all the instruments sound powerful but husky — Virgil Thomson”Synonyms: hoarsehuskyOpposite euphoniousSimilar cacophonous, cacophonic
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haphazardadjective
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Webster's Dictionary (1913)
Gruff (grŭf), adjective [Compar. Gruffer (grŭf′wb-a1′>′ẽr); superlative Gruffest.]
Origin: D. grof; akin to G. grob, OHG. gerob, grob, Dan. grov, Sw. grof, perh. akin to AS. rcófan to break, Z. reavc, rupture, g- standing for the AS. prefix ge-, Goth. ga-.
Of a rough or stern manner, voice, or countenance; sour; surly; severe; harsh. Joseph Addison
Gruff, disagreeable, sarcastic remarks.— William M. Thackeray
— Gruff′wb-a1′>′ly, adverb — Gruff′wb-a1′>′ness, noun
Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913), from GCIDE 0.54