Rude Definition & Meaning

American

British

Related Words

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Examples

Related Words

Synonyms Rude 1 American [ryd] / rüd /

noun

1. François 1784–1855, French sculptor.

rude 2 American [rood] / rud /

adjective

ruder, rudest

1. discourteous or impolite, especially in a deliberate way.

   a rude reply.

   Synonyms: fresh, pert, saucy, impudent, impertinent, brusque, curt, unmannerly, uncivil

2. without culture, learning, or refinement.

   rude, illiterate peasants.

   Synonyms: rough, vulgar, coarse, uncouth, uncivilized, uncultured, unrefined

3. rough in manners or behavior; unmannerly; uncouth.

4. rough, harsh, or ungentle.

   rude hands.

5. roughly wrought, built, or formed; of a crude construction or kind.

   a rude cottage.

6. not properly or fully developed; raw; unevolved.

   a rude first stage of development.

7. harsh to the ear.

   rude sounds.

8. without artistic elegance; of a primitive simplicity.

   a rude design.

   Synonyms: artless, rustic

9. violent or tempestuous, as the waves.

   Synonyms: stormy, turbulent, tumultuous, fierce

10. robust, sturdy, or vigorous.

    rude strength.

11. approximate or tentative.

    a rude first calculation of costs.

rude British / ruːd /

adjective

1. insulting or uncivil; discourteous; impolite

   he was rude about her hairstyle

2. lacking refinement; coarse or uncouth

3. vulgar or obscene

   a rude joke

4. unexpected and unpleasant

   a rude awakening to the facts of economic life

5. roughly or crudely made

   we made a rude shelter on the island

6. rough or harsh in sound, appearance, or behaviour

7. humble or lowly

8. (prenominal) robust or sturdy

   in rude health

9. (prenominal) approximate or imprecise

   a rude estimate

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Related Words

See boorish. See raw.

Other Word Forms

• overrude adjective
• overrudely adverb
• overrudeness noun
• rudely adverb
• rudeness noun
• unrude adjective
• unrudely adverb

Etymology

Origin of rude

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English rude, ruide, from Old French, from Latin rudis

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.

Elsewhere in the book he describes an airline employee who deliberately sent a rude customer’s luggage to Nairobi even though the passenger was headed to Los Angeles.

From The Wall Street Journal

According to Montoya, the four left Hollywood Comedy as soon as Sunday finished her set, but before leaving Demitra confronted the host one last time and said he was being rude to them.

From Los Angeles Times

I was about to say that guests were folks you actually invited, but I knew he’d get on me for being rude.

From Literature

Grumbling about rude people interrupting dinner, his aunt went to the door.

From Literature

The doctor had not taken the time to explain, and the nurses had been bossy and rude, said Ma.

From Literature

Related Words

• abusive
• blunt
• boorish
• coarse
• crude
• ignorant
• impolite
• insulting
• intrusive
• obscene
• surly
• vulgar

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.