gruff.

1. Low, rough, or harsh in vocal sound.

2. Abrupt or unfriendly in manner, with little outward warmth.

Use it for

Words that belong together

• a gruff voice
• a gruff reply

On the page

A gruff voice answered from the dark side of the doorway.

Usage notes

Primary category: literary / elevated general. Forms: Comparative gruffer; superlative gruffest. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings. Established modern English lexical item. No separate regional spelling or grammatical inflection entry. Writing functions: dialogue, description. Commonness: moderately common.