gruff
adjective
1. brusque and surly and forbidding
- gruff manner
- a gruff reply
Similar word(s): crusty, curmudgeonly
2. deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion
- gruff voices
- the dog's gruff barking
Similar word(s): cacophonic, cacophonous, hoarse, husky
verb
1. To speak gruffly.