COARSE

coarse, common, rough-cut, uncouth, vulgar

(adjective) lacking refinement or cultivation or taste; “he had coarse manners but a first-rate mind”; “behavior that branded him as common”; “an untutored and uncouth human being”; “an uncouth soldier--a real tough guy”; “appealing to the vulgar taste for violence”; “the vulgar display of the newly rich”

coarse, harsh

(adjective) of textures that are rough to the touch or substances consisting of relatively large particles; “coarse meal”; “coarse sand”; “a coarse weave”

coarse, common

(adjective) of low or inferior quality or value; “of what coarse metal ye are molded”- Shakespeare; “produced...the common cloths used by the poorer population”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adjective

coarse (comparative coarser, superlative coarsest)

Composed of large parts or particles; of inferior quality or appearance; not fine in material or close in texture.

Lacking refinement, taste or delicacy.

Usage notes

• Nouns to which "coarse" is often applied: language, particle, grain, graining, sand, powder, gravel, grit, salt, gold, thread, hair, cloth, grid, aggregate, texture, grass, fish, angling, fishing.

Synonyms

• (of inferior quality): thick, rough, sharp, hard

• (not refined): rough, rude, uncouth, blunt, unpolished, inelegant, indelicate, vulgar, gritty, obscene, crass

Antonyms

• (of inferior quality): fine

Anagrams

• Arceos, Rascoe, ocreas

Source: Wiktionary


Coarse, a. [Compar. Coarser; superl. Coarsest.] Etym: [As this word was anciently written course, or cours, it may be an abbreviation of of course, in the common manner of proceeding, common, and hence, homely, made for common domestic use, plain, rude, rough, gross, e. g., "Though the threads be course." Gascoigne. See Course.]

1. Large in bulk, or composed of large parts or particles; of inferior quality or appearance; not fine in material or close in texture; gross; thick; rough; -- opposed to fine; as, coarse sand; coarse thread; coarse cloth; coarse bread.

2. Not refined; rough; rude; unpolished; gross; indelicate; as, coarse manners; coarse language. I feel Of what coarse metal ye are molded. Shak. To copy, in my coarse English, his beautiful expressions. Dryden.

Syn.

– Large; thick; rough; gross; blunt; uncouth; unpolished; inelegant; indelicate; vulgar.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

27 May 2025

DIRECTIONALITY

(noun) the property of being directional or maintaining a direction; “the directionality of written English is from left to right”


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Coffee Trivia

Hawaii and California are the only two U.S. states that grow coffee plants commercially.

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