Words are instrumental in our daily routines. Besides written and oral communication, words enable us to describe situations and emotions. For instance, if someone is grouchy or bad-tempered, the best word to describe such a person would be ornery; so what’s the “ornery” definition?
The word means having a mean, ugly or dislikable character. Ornery is used to describe someone’s bad qualities or disposition. Other words that can describe the term ornery are grumpy, dyspeptic, cranky, bad-tempered, or irritable.
You may probably have heard this word before but didn’t know its meaning. You can now put your worries to rest because once you’re done with this article, you’ll be familiar with all there is to know about the word “ornery” and how best to use it when speaking or writing. Without further ado, let’s begin.
What Is The Definition of Ornery?
By definition, Ornery refers to someone or something difficult to deal with or control. Have you ever dealt with someone who does not want to help out or makes things hard for everyone around them?
Such a person can be described as ornery. The word can also refer to something that cannot be contained easily, for instance, an ornery animal or disease. Here’s an example in a sentence: I pity the lady; she’s had to overcome divorce, abuse, and an ornery case of cervical cancer.
Ornery is also used to describe someone with an irritable or unpleasant character. Someone that is always grumpy and hard to please. Such people disagree with any idea or opinion; they are “cantankerous.”
The state of being ornery can be temporarily caused by medication, or it can be someone’s inherent character. Here’s a sentence to emphasize this word: The ball went over the fence and into the yard on an ornery older man whom the children disliked.
What Is The Meaning of Ornery?
The word can also mean “mischievous, teasing, or prankish nature.” However, this particular definition is not necessarily negative.
The definition is most common in the southern part of the United States and applies in light, humorous situations. “Ornery” can best describe someone who jokes about and plays pranks on people for amusement, but people still love it. Another word that can describe such a character is cheeky or naughty.
Here’s an example sentence: It was great to get back at those ornery children after a scene of chaos. The sentence shows that the children did something bad and unallowed. For instance, they might have been involved in a fight.
Is Ornery a Negative Word?
In most cases, it is negative because the word describes a difficult situation to deal with. It’s also used to describe a stubborn person or has an irritable disposition. If someone calls you an ornery person, they mean that you are difficult or irritating to be around, hence the conclusion that “ornery” is negative. Again, is ornery a southern slang word? No, the word ornery may have originated in the United States but is not slang.
How To Use Ornery In A Sentence?
The word ornery applies in different contexts as a noun- orneriness, adjective-ornery, and adverb-ornerily. As a noun, the word describes being irritable, grumpy, or stubborn.
The word describes the state someone is in. Here’s an example to illustrate further: Tom, with rare orneriness, explained why he had to take up the neglected role after Sally suddenly left.
When the word is used as an adjective, it describes a noun. For instance, an ornery donkey means that the donkey isn’t easy to deal with. The word describes the donkey. Another example: Please do not leave the pen gate open; it will give the ornery lamas a chance to escape.
When the word ornery describes how a specific action is carried out, it becomes ornerily. Here’s an example to explain further: The older man ornerily hit my car badge and took off.
10 Examples Of Ornery Usage In A Sentence
So far, we’ve looked at several definitions of the word ornery and the various ways of using the word correctly. The following ten sentences show how to use “ornery” in a different situation as a noun, adjective, and adverb. Practice these sentences regularly to test your understanding:
- The park is usually a desolate and peaceful place though ornery men come in the afternoon to ruin everything.
- The soccer player ornerily kicked the ball, hitting the referee. Needless to say that he was shown a red card.
- I expected the movie to be bland, but it had surprising self-deprecating humor, mischief, and orneriness.
- Don’t be fooled by Brian’s ornery character; he is trying to quit smoking hence the outbursts.
- Despite David’s ornery antiques, he is a humble, funny, and adorable young man that would never hurt anybody intentionally.
- Trust me; you don’t want a president that goes about ornerily issuing statements that would cause diplomatic spats.
- Paul George acknowledged how his ornery actions hurt those close to him and asked for forgiveness.
- The last C.E.O got fired due to telling an African American to go back home with rare orneriness.
- I never like dealing with Amanda because she handles issues in an ornery manner.
- After disagreeing with an official, the coach was sent off ornerily, hitting his whistle out of his hand.
How Do You Spell Ornery?
The word ornery is spelled as o.r.n.e.r.y. The IPA word’s spelling is \ ˈȯr-nə-rē \
The word ornery may be tricky for those who’ve never heard the term before. Remember that the expression’s first “r” and “e” are silent. The word, however, does not have double letters. You can practice spelling the word regularly and often incorporate it into your speech to get the spelling right.
How Do You Pronounce Ornery?
Ornery is pronounced as [or.nr.ee] or [ar.orn.re].
The word has different pronunciations; the American and the British version. Whichever pronunciation you use, it’s essential to pronounce the word correctly. This can be achieved through constant use of the word.
How Many Syllables Are in Ornery?
The word ornery has two syllables. They include or. nery.
Some people believe the word has three syllables. However, to determine how many syllables it has, ensure you pay close attention to how many times your jaw drops when pronouncing the word.
Ornery Synonym
- Obstinate
- Difficult
- Cranky
- Petulant
- Grumpy
- irritable
Ornery Antonym
- Nice
- Helpful
- Agreeable
- Pleasant
- Friendly
History & Etymology of Ornery
The history of the word ornery dates back to 1816 as ornary; a coined American English word from the word ordinary. The term was used to refer to something plain or not unique.
“Ornery” was first used in the United States at the beginning of the 19th century. It was first identified as a coined word from “ordinary” to describe someone or something bland or ugly. However, after 1860, the term meant someone ill-tempered or obstinate. It’s important to note that the original meaning of the word ornery is no longer applicable today.
When Was Ornery First Used?
The word’s first recorded use of this word was back in 1849.
You should understand that the word still existed as an English word before 1849. However, the word had a different meaning from what people know nowadays.
Conclusion
Ornery is a simple word that may sound complicated at first glance. However, it shouldn’t be the case now that you’ve extensively learned the definitions, different versions, and how to use the word correctly. If you have some issues using the word, please refer to this article and practice using the word more to improve your reading and writing skills.
Shawn Manaher is the founder and CEO of The Content Authority. He’s one part content manager, one part writing ninja organizer, and two parts leader of top content creators. You don’t even want to know what he calls pancakes.