SURLY Synonyms: 114 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'surly' different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of surly are crabbed , gloomy , glum , morose , saturnine , sulky , and sullen . While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner. // a typical surly teenager

Q: When is it sensible to use 'crabbed' instead of 'surly'?

While in some cases nearly identical to surly , crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner. // the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

Q: When is 'gloomy' a more appropriate choice than 'surly'?

The words gloomy and surly are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness. // a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

Q: When might 'glum' be a better fit than 'surly'?

The synonyms glum and surly are sometimes interchangeable, but glum suggests a silent dispiritedness. // a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

Q: How do 'morose' and 'glum' relate to one another, in the sense of 'surly'?

Morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy. // morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

Q: When could 'saturnine' be used to replace 'surly'?

While the synonyms saturnine and surly are close in meaning, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition. // a saturnine cynic always finding fault

Q: When can 'sulky' be used instead of 'surly'?

The meanings of sulky and surly largely overlap; however, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness. // grew sulky after every spat

Q: In what contexts can 'sullen' take the place of 'surly'?

In some situations, the words sullen and surly are roughly equivalent. However, sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable. // remained sullen amid the festivities

surly

adjective

ˈsər-lē

Definition of surly next

as in pouting

given to or displaying a resentful silence and often irritability went about his chores in a surly huff, totally annoyed that he was stuck at home on this beautiful Saturday

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in irritable

having or showing a habitually bad temper the surly receptionist told us we'd have to wait outside in the rain

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

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

Some common synonyms of surly are crabbed, gloomy, glum, morose, saturnine, sulky, and sullen. While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner.

a typical surly teenager

When is it sensible to use crabbed instead of surly?

While in some cases nearly identical to surly, crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner.

the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than surly?

The words gloomy and surly are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness.

a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

When might glum be a better fit than surly?

The synonyms glum and surly are sometimes interchangeable, but glum suggests a silent dispiritedness.

a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

How do morose and glum relate to one another, in the sense of surly?

Morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy.

morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

When could saturnine be used to replace surly?

While the synonyms saturnine and surly are close in meaning, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition.

a saturnine cynic always finding fault

When can sulky be used instead of surly?

The meanings of sulky and surly largely overlap; however, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness.

grew sulky after every spat

In what contexts can sullen take the place of surly?

In some situations, the words sullen and surly are roughly equivalent. However, sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable.

remained sullen amid the festivities

Examples 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 surly Way too little accountability Florida’s sweeping 2023 voucher expansion gives any parent in Florida roughly $8,000 in private school tuition to escape the surly bonds of a public system state lawmakers won’t adequately fund. —

Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 16 May 2024 There are coaches in the Premier League currently unable to navigate an interview without a surly comment or flash of ego. —

Sebastian Stafford-Bloor, The Athletic, 1 Aug. 2024 Fed up with his surly demeanor and negative attitude, the station hires psychologist Dr. Ivy Reed (Essence Atkins) to infuse a level of emotion into Poppa’s talk show. —

Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 21 Oct. 2024 Meanwhile, Dexter’s own co-worker in the Miami Police Department, the surly James Doakes, is tightening the screws in his grudge against Dexter. —

Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 23 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for surly

Recent Examples of Synonyms for surly

Adjective

By the end, Liverpool’s players seemed tired and Klopp was irritable, clearly in need of a rest.

— Simon Hughes, The Athletic, 20 Jan. 2025
The trio’s sixth record is charmingly irritable in both of its moods: hopped up on fluffy coffee while cracking baseball jokes, or dragging out downbeats and lamenting power structures to goad listeners with mounting anticipation.

— Madison Bloom, Pitchfork, 4 Dec. 2024