curmudgeon

Meaning

1. An ill-tempered person full of stubborn ideas or opinions, often an older man.
2. (archaic) A miser.

Synonyms

grouch

spitfire

crosspatch

miser

crabber

grasping

growler

grumbler

martinet

niggard

predacious

predatory

rapacious

raptorial

ravening

ravenous

ravishing

rude

rustic

scold

scolder

scrooge

tightwad

vixen

vulturous

yenta

predaceous

ball of fire

cross grained person

boorish

clownish

common scold

Translations

Griesgram

bourru

Miesepeter

rabugento

musone

vrek

casmurro

ronchon

Isegrim

Sauertopf

Geizhals

burbero

bougon

bisbetico

cascarrabias

Pronounced as (IPA)

/kɜːˈmʌdʒ.ən/

Etymology

Numerous folk etymologies exist for this word.
An alternative spelling attested in 1600 is cornmudgin, in Holland's translation of Livy, rendering Latin frūmentārius (“corn-merchant”). This has been suggested as the original form of the word, but OED notes that curmudgeon is attested some years before this, concluding that cornmudgin was merely a nonce-word by Holland.
The word is attested from the late 1500s in the forms curmudgeon and curmudgen, and during the 17th century in numerous spelling variants, including cormogeon, cormogion, cormoggian, cormudgeon, curmudgion, curmuggion, curmudgin, curr-mudgin, curre-megient.