cantankerous

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“
Whether it is Charlie Croker's new trophy wife, Conrad Hensley's young disgruntled wife, Roger Too White's near-invisible wife, or the cantankerous former wife of Raymond Peepgass (an executive at PlannersBanc), they all sound the same.

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Definitions (6)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (2)

  1. adjective Ill-tempered and quarrelsome; disagreeable: disliked her cantankerous landlord.
  2. adjective Difficult to handle: "had to use liquid helium, which is supercold, costly and cantankerous” (Boston Globe).

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Examples

  • Although he was well past the age when his peers were said to grow cantankerous, and although he was a chacma-the largest of the baboon families-Mon Cul was considered a fit companion for the circus tots. —  Another Roadside Attraction
  • "You are cantankerous, " he repeated, glad to see her that way again. —  Male Wanted
  • Whether it is Charlie Croker's new trophy wife, Conrad Hensley's young disgruntled wife, Roger Too White's near-invisible wife, or the cantankerous former wife of Raymond Peepgass (an executive at PlannersBanc), they all sound the same. —  A Man Half Full
  • But you had no lack of spirit in those days, too I was a most disagreeable child, perverse,--cantankerous--I can hear my mother saying it! —  The Inside of the Cup — Complete
  • Lynn: What a terrible thing to say ... —  Against the Japanese Grain
 

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Cantankerous has been looked up 862 times, favorited 8 times, listed 175 times, and commented on 3 times.

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Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Perhaps from Middle English contek, dissension (influenced by such words as rancorous and cankerous), from Anglo-Norman contec, possibly from Latin contāctus, past participle of contingere, to touch; see contact.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. Prop. dial., with suffix -ous, from English dial. cantanker, *contanker, a corruption (by assimilation of adjacent syllables) of Middle English conteckour, contekour, prob. also *contackour, *contakour, a quarrelsome person, from conteck, contack, contek, contak, contention, quarreling: see conteck, conteckour.
 

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/kænˈtæŋkərəs/
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