(a.) of a rough or stern manner, voice, or countenance; sour; surly; severe; harsh.

abrupt acerb acid acrimonious aggressive bad-tempered bearish beastly biting bluff blunt boorish brash brassy brazen brusque cantankerous caustic cavalier choked churlish coarse crabbed crabby cracked croaking croaky cross crotchety crusty curt cutting deep dour dry fierce grouchy growling grumbling grumbly grumpish grumpy guttural harsh harsh-sounding hoarse husky ill-humored ill-natured irascible irritable low metallic morose peevish petulant querulous ragged rasping raucid raucous rough roupy rude saturnine severe sharp short short-tempered snippety snippy sour squawking squawky stertorous stinging strangled sulky sullen surly testy thick throaty tinny truculent uncivil