grouty

A grouty old man scowls at the children playing near his fence.

Definition

1. Adjective:
   • Irritable or ill-tempered: "grouty" describes a person who is prone to anger or easily annoyed, often in a sullen or surly manner.
   • Sulky or morose: It can also refer to a mood of silent resentment or discontent, without overt aggression.

Usage Examples

• (He was irritable and easily angered.)
• (His response was sulky and ill-tempered.)

Advanced Usage

• "to be in a grouty mood": to be in a state of persistent irritability.

  • She woke up in a grouty mood and avoided talking to anyone. (She was irritable and uncommunicative.)

• "a grouty disposition": a natural tendency toward being easily annoyed.

  • His grouty disposition made him difficult to work with. (His irritable nature caused problems.)

Variants and Related Words

• Groutiness (n): the quality or state of being grouty.

  • The groutiness of his behavior alienated his friends. (His irritability drove them away.)

• Groutily (adv): in a grouty manner.

  • He groutily refused to explain why he was upset. (He did so with irritation.)

Synonyms

• Cantankerous: bad-tempered and argumentative.
• Peevish: easily irritated, especially by minor things.
• Sulky: silently bad-tempered or resentful.

Related Idioms

• To get up on the wrong side of the bed: to start the day in a bad mood, often used as a milder equivalent for being grouty.

  • He must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed today — he’s so grouty. (He’s unusually irritable.)

• To have a chip on one’s shoulder: to hold a grudge or be easily offended, similar to a grouty attitude.

  • She has a chip on her shoulder about criticism, making her grouty. (She is overly sensitive and irritable.)