gruff
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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For someone whose notoriety has twice become inseparable from who he’s married to, Pitt’s choice to play gruff loners feels noticeably calculated, keeping an arm’s distance between his work and the audience.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
Known for his gruff vocals, LaMontagne first came to the scene in the early aughts as a timid troubadour.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
As Morrison jammed in the kitchen, Hansard said his request for one of his songs was met with a gruff response from Morrison.
From BBC ● Jul. 30, 2026
Senate, the gruff oysterman opened with a joke.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
"There's nothing to be afraid of," the policeman said in his gruff, scary voice.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
“From Day 1, we’ve always run away from whatever record we just finished,” he says, gruffer and more matter-of-fact than his brother.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2021
Dad was gruffer, but still avoided saying it outright.
From Slate ● May 29, 2018
“There was a handful of people here for something yesterday,” says the voice, which seems to be getting gruffer.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 7, 2018
Sanchez is a slightly gruffer presence in the background.
From New York Times ● Jun. 12, 2017
Before I could react, Tyson’s voice changed again, becoming deeper and gruffer, like the other guy we’d heard talking to Luke outside the cafeteria.
From "The Sea of Monsters" by Rick Riordan
Possessing one of the sharpest minds in the business, Prince was one of its gruffest truth-tellers.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2019
Here bringing heart to what could be a harsh cad, in even his his gruffest, roughest performances, Finney always found an emotional center that allowed audiences in.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 8, 2019
“Loving you is complicated,” he announces, in his gruffest tone: the “you” is himself, hip-hop, and his own success.
From The New Yorker ● Mar. 18, 2015
Mr. Bradlee looked up from his omnipresent crossword puzzle, “and in his gruffest voice,” Pincus recalled, “he said, ‘You ought to be paying me for all the fun you’re having.’ ”
From Washington Post
"Now look here," said he, in his gruffest voice, "this is a bad job—bad job."
From Old Trails on the Niagara Frontier by Frank H. Severance
Vocabulary lists containing gruff
100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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The Girl Who Drank the Moon
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Auggie & Me
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