Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective boorish differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of boorish are churlish, clownish, and loutish. While all these words mean "uncouth in manners or appearance," boorish implies rudeness of manner due to insensitiveness to others' feelings and unwillingness to be agreeable.

a drunk's boorish behavior

When might churlish be a better fit than boorish?

While the synonyms churlish and boorish are close in meaning, churlish suggests surliness, unresponsiveness, and ungraciousness.

churlish remarks

When is it sensible to use clownish instead of boorish?

In some situations, the words clownish and boorish are roughly equivalent. However, clownish suggests ill-bred awkwardness, ignorance or stupidity, ungainliness, and often a propensity for absurd antics.

an adolescent's clownish conduct

When could loutish be used to replace boorish?

The words loutish and boorish are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, loutish implies bodily awkwardness together with stupidity.

a loutish oaf

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 boorish The supporting cast included Damian Young as Valerie’s husband Mark, Malin Akerman as young starlet Juna, Laura Silverman as reality show producer Jane, Lance Barber as boorish TV writer Paulie G and Robert Michael Morris — who sadly passed away in 2017 — as Valerie’s hairdresser pal Mickey. Dave Nemetz, TVLine, 19 July 2024 The next day, on their neighbouring balcony, the girls befriend some hard-partying lads: Badger (Shaun Thomas), who Tara immediately takes a liking to, and his best friend, boorish ladies man Paddy (Samuel Bottomley). Maybelle Morgan, refinery29.com, 7 Mar. 2024 The old tourist is essentially the boorish figure from the headlines—solipsistic, oriented toward the self, someone who superimposes their fantasies onto a place and then is outraged when their expectations aren’t met. Chelsea Leu, The Atlantic, 30 June 2024 Anyway, after all is said and done, his letter impresses me as another boorish rant by a Trumpian true believer who has bitten the bait of a world-class liar. Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 5 Feb. 2024 See all Example Sentences for boorish 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boorish
Adjective
  • His loutish gimmick of the week is an obnoxious get-ready-with-me tutorial that the rest of his Chamber mates, unfortunately, can’t scroll past.
    Emma Sharpe, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2024
  • Widowed waitress Yvette Yates Redick and misfit nine-year-old son Benjamin Steinhauser remain in mourning for the man of the house — a vacancy poorly filled by her loutish current boyfriend (Rob Mayes).
    Dennis Harvey, Variety, 23 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • She’s still been busy, though, with all the ski trials and uncouth houseguests.
    Bethy Squires, Vulture, 17 Oct. 2024
  • That collab has produced six custom 1α bikes, each costing €19,900, and looking – to my uncouth eye, at least – almost exactly like standard 1α models (priced at €14,900) but with an ill-fitting and slightly fuzzy seat cover.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 12 Oct. 2024
Adjective
  • Their classless behavior is almost unbelievable at times.
    Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 18 Feb. 2024
  • More recently, Venezuela’s disastrous efforts under Presidents Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro to pursue a classless society through expropriations and unsustainable spending ultimately chased away businesses, private investment, and most of the middle class.
    Luis Alberto Moreno, Foreign Affairs, 8 Dec. 2020
Adjective
  • The British series, which debuted in 2022, follows Oscar winner Gary Oldman’s churlish and disheveled Jackson Lamb as the leader of a team of disgraced and disowned MI5 agents scrappily and shabbily getting the job done.
    Trey Williams, The Hollywood Reporter, 9 Aug. 2024
  • Asked about these comments, and responding to them, Tiger himself was churlish.
    Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 18 July 2024
Adjective
  • Before news of the repression broke, many Western media stories about Chechen Republic Head Ramzan Kadyrov portrayed him as a clownish dictator obsessed with his Instagram account.
    Layla Taimienova, Foreign Affairs, 10 May 2017
  • Over the coming days, the owners of Four Seasons Total Landscaping did their patriotic duty and cashed in on their temporary notoriety, selling souvenirs to commemorate the fiasco; to Trump’s detractors, the debacle epitomized the clownish incompetence that had defined his presidency.
    Meredith Blake, Los Angeles Times, 3 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Give yourself permission to go see a truly stupid movie.
    Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US, theweek, 8 Nov. 2024
  • Among the show’s many, many, many Twilight Zone spoofs, this one is the funniest and the best, with a conclusion that’s equal parts brilliant and stupid.
    Joshua Kurp, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2024
Adjective
  • Married to Stanley, a man of carnal appetites and vulgar manners, Stella has embraced the crude pleasures of realism, while her freeloading sister still clings to tattered aristocratic illusions.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2024
  • Trump was heard bragging in vulgar terms about women.
    Alena Botros, Fortune, 4 Nov. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near boorish

Cite this Entry

“Boorish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boorish. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

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