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disgruntled

UK/dɪsˈɡɹʌntl̩d/US/dɪsˈɡɹʌnt(ə)ld/
adjectiveC1Very rare — outside the 30,000 commonest English words, so you will meet it in writing rather than in speechneutral

Disgruntled means annoyed and dissatisfied, usually because you feel you have been treated unfairly. Not furious — sour.

It attaches to customers, employees and former colleagues, and a disgruntled ex-employee is close to a fixed phrase in stories about leaks. The word implies grumbling rather than confrontation. There is a well-known joke about nobody ever being gruntled, and gruntle does exist as a rare back-formation, which makes the joke slightly less good and rather more interesting.

Definitions of disgruntled

  1. 1adjectivedisgruntledAngry and dissatisfied, especially at unfair treatment.C1

    “A disgruntled customer had left three reviews.”

Where it comes from

From disgruntle + -ed.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practised in Feelings & Character, A Man Called Ove

First appears in chapter 4 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word

disgruntled in the wild

  • The ILP was founded in December 1920 by disgruntled members of the Dominion Labour Party, who left that organization when it was taken over by rightist elements.

    Independent Labour Party (Manitoba, 1920)

  • Following the election (in which the party won seven seats), a group of disgruntled ILP members succeeded in temporarily disaffiliating the parties.

    Independent Labour Party (Manitoba, 1920)

  • Keener is known for her portrayals of disgruntled, melancholic and sympathetic women in independent films, as well as her supporting roles in studio films.

    Catherine Keener

  • The online casino was eventually taken offline some time in late 2000-early 2001 by disgruntled webmasters who had fallen victim to the scam.

    CyberThrill

  • A tip from a disgruntled employee led to their arrest and conviction, although the U.S.

    The LaMontages brothers

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From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.