churl

12 synonyms for churl, grouped by meaning and by how common each one is.

Noun — A free peasant (as opposed to a serf) of the lowest rank, below an earl and a thane; a freeman; also (more generally), a person without royal or noble status; a commoner.

Synonyms

Less common

Still standard English, but they carry more weight.

peasant crank barbarian

Rare, literary or technical

Precise, but they will stand out — check the sense before using one.

crosspatch Goth grouch niggard scrooge grump tike skinflint boor

Etymology

Inherited from West Midland Middle English churle (“person not of the nobility or clergy; serf, servant, simpleton, fellow”, East Midland Middle English cherl), from Old English ċeorl (“freeman ranking below a þegn but above a thrall; commoner, peasant; countryman, husbandman; man; husband”), from Proto-West Germanic *...

Full origin of churl →

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peasant crank barbarian goth crosspatch niggard boor grouch scrooge grump tike skinflint

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