ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsCcantankerous
ISEE/SSAThard
cantankerous
Meaning: bad-tempered and inclined to argue
cantankerous in a sentence
How cantankerous is used in real sentences:
The cantankerous shopkeeper argued with customers over minor details.
Even simple questions provoked a cantankerous reply from the exhausted official.
“A cantankerous sensor specialist named Doran challenged every suggestion, often interrupting before younger analysts could finish explaining their tests.”
— from the passage The Drift Above
Synonyms for cantankerous
Other words for cantankerous — irritable, ornery and quarrelsome — carry the same meaning.
- irritable
- ornery
- quarrelsome
Antonyms of cantankerous
Words that mean the opposite of cantankerous:
- agreeable
- amiable
- easygoing
Where it comes from
Of uncertain origin; in English since the eighteenth century.
Memory hook
A cantankerous person says 'CAN'T' and turns every request into an argument.
Practice cantankerous in the app