From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishsurlysur‧ly /ˈsɜːli $ ˈsɜːrli/ adjective BAD-TEMPEREDbad-tempered and unfriendly SYN sullen a surly teenager —surliness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
surly• The others hung back, looking surly.• He sort of slips the surly bonds of fact every now and then.• She knew him, and could imagine his state now, half surly defiance, half anxious and defensive fear.• Still, he is impressive as the surly, enigmatic intellectual who offers Jane a glimmer of hope for a better life.• I declined to tip the porter, who left with a surly expression.• I declined to tip the porter, who left with a surly expression.• Her boss being a surly middle-aged man at a nearby table in an otherwise almost empty caf.• Fred's attitude of surly non-cooperativeness makes further investigation difficult.• Kevin can be really surly sometimes.• Passengers complained about the dirty lavatory and surly staff.• a staff of surly teenagersOrigin surly (1500-1600) sirly “like a lord, proud and grand” ((14-17 centuries)), from sir 