ˈrüd adjective
( -er/-est )
Etymology: Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin rudis; akin to Latin rudus rubble, broken stone, rullus coarse, rustic, Middle Irish rūad ruin, Middle Dutch ruten to tear, plunder, Old Norse reyta to tear up, pluck out, Latin ruere to rush, fall, dig up — more at rug
1. : being in or marked by a rough, plain, or unfinished condition:
a. : lacking in craftsmanship or artistic finish : unpolished
a rude sketch
a few rude benches on which the players usually sat — Edna Ferber
ornate window facings had broken off, leaving rude gaps in the design — Marcia Davenport
b. of sound : discordant , jarring
a rude serenade
the frowning-down of rude intonations and laughing-out of oddities — D.L.Bolinger
c. : natural , raw , unmanufactured
rude cotton
examines, bit by bit, the rude material of knowledge — T.L.Peacock
d. of land : rugged , wild
a rude and rocky gorge commences — Tom Marvel
shelter in a rude country of forests — American Guide Series: Virginia
e. : stormy , turbulent , bitter
winter's rude winds
rude seas
f. : hastily executed and admittedly imperfect or imprecise
rude estimates
g. : being in or characteristic of a primitive or undeveloped state
succeeded in constructing a rude steam engine — T.B.Macaulay
peasants use rude wooden plows — Jack Raymond
idea that man has progressed from rude beginnings to civilized society — S.F.Mason
h. : immoderate , unmitigated
the bright rude sun — Gordon Merrick
i. : being in the rough state : undressed , unfinished
rude monoliths
j. : simple , elementary , elemental , unsubtle
community on the outskirts of civilization which continues to maintain itself in rude plenty and comfort — W.H.Mallock
landscape done in rude whites, blacks, deep browns — Richard Harris
2. : lacking refinement or delicacy:
a. : lacking education : ignorant , unlearned , untutored
rude mountaineers
b. : lacking polish : inelegant , uncouth
even the rude dialects of the illiterate began to acquire dignity — Josiah Royce
gave to his historical compositions a rude dramatic vigor — Roger Fry
c. : offensive in manner or action : discourteous , unmannerly , impudent
made a rude reply
his brusqueness did not make him rude — O.S.J.Gogarty
d. : marked by a lack of gentleness or by the use of force
place a rude hand upon our little mare's bridle — Kenneth Roberts
dragged him with rude cuffs before the magistrate — A.C.Whitehead
self-discipline and single-mindedness must have been needed to make this rude initiation to the stage endurable — Times Literary Supplement
e. : uncivilized , barbarous , savage
in the rude ages of society — Adam Smith
during rude times no man can be useful or faithful to his tribe without courage — C.R.Darwin
f. : unaffected , guileless , open
arguments for rude virtue are almost inevitably less stimulating than those for sophisticated corruption — Wolcott Gibbs
ought to … speak the rude truth in all ways — R.W.Emerson
g. : coarse , ribald , vulgar
exchanged banter in rude phrases, which at first shocked her — Theodore Dreiser
paint on which someone had scratched a rude picture — F.D.Ommanney
unimportant work with a few small, rude words in it — Anthony West
3. : marked by lack of training or skill : inexperienced , inexpert
rude workmanship
was but a rude scholar
4. : robust , sturdy , vigorous
spoke of the rude health of their children — Joseph Conrad
the rude strength of the idiom — Gilbert Millstein
5.
a. : sudden and disconcerting or unpleasant : abrupt
freedom that is due for a rude awakening sooner or later — W.J.Reilly
the change may not be so rude or so sweeping — Douglas Cater
b. : grave , imperative , unavoidable
inner strength to endure in the face of rude realities — Americas
Synonyms:
ill-mannered , discourteous , impolite , uncivil , ungracious : in this set rude is the strongest word. It implies either a general and habitual deficiency in manners, grace, or polish or a coarse insensitivity to another's feelings or even a desire to wound them
she thought he was rude, and so did he — and tried to philosophize himself out of his sense of social maladjustment — H.S.Canby
I don't see why we should go to a house where the host apparently enjoys flatly contradicting you … probably he doesn't even know when he's being rude — Sinclair Lewis
ill-mannered stresses great want of knowledge of proprieties, usages, and graces of good society
our Royal Family are getting a little tired of the well-meant, but at the same time ill-mannered homage of well-dressed crowds — London Daily News
the pompous ill-mannered police — Harper's
discourteous is likely to imply a consciousness of offending or wounding another if not the intent
discourteous enough to slam the door in another's face
discourteous in pointedly refusing to acknowledge his greeting
impolite suggests less obvious and egregious departures from better conduct
had been somewhat impolite in failing to answer her invitation as quickly as good manners demanded
uncivil indicates lack of decent consideration usually expected among men but not prescribed by any code of etiquette
“comfortable seat, and be damned to you!” was the patient's uncivil reply — Anthony Trollope
ungracious may indicate lack of grace and consideration ensuing through gaucheness, callowness, surliness, irritation
an interesting person, this stern Australian nurse — taciturn, suspicious, ungracious — A. Conan Doyle
Synonyms:
crude , rough , callow , raw , green : except for callow and green , words in this series follow much the same pattern of semantic expansion. They are here compared only as indicating lack of social refinement in persons and in their actions and thoughts. rude may indicate complete lack of social polish or civility
to be ill-bred and rude is intolerable, and the way to be kicked out of company — Earl of Chesterfield
It may suggest intentional discourtesy or ill treatment of others
I do not know whether it came from his own innate depravity or from the promptings of his master, but he was rude enough to set a dog at me — A. Conan Doyle
crude may emphasize a predisposition to the gross, simple, obvious, or primitive and an ignorance of the amenities
they seem pleasant and good-humored, but a little crude, and lacking in the subtler forms of wit and understanding — Rose Macaulay
More than others in this series, crude may suggest an enduring characteristic rather than one from a passing phase
the marks of the thoroughbred were simply not there. The man was blatant, crude, overly confidential … One often observed in him a certain pathetic wistfulness, a reaching out for a grand manner that was utterly beyond him — H.L.Mencken
rough suggests harsh, uncivil, unfeeling action or conduct, but may be concerned more with manifest conduct than inner character
men of a rough and unsparing address should take great care that they be always in the right, the justice and propriety of their sentiments being the only tolerable apology … for such conduct — William Cowper
It may thus suggest outer bluffness rather than inner incivility
a rough old charitable mercifulness, better than sentimental ointment — George Meredith
callow , green , and raw all suggest novices' experiences and situations as causes for lack of savoir faire without indicating stupidity, truculence, or obduracy and without suggesting future inadequacy or gaucherie. callow almost always denotes the immaturity of adolescence or early manhood
not the aggregation of callow schoolboys fresh from the playing fields which in prewar times filled the academic halls, but an assemblage of men whose maturity has been forged in the holocaust of battle — Amy Loveman
green suggests unfamiliarity with a new environment or pursuit
young men who were green recruits last autumn have matured into self-assured and hardened fighting men — F.D.Roosevelt
It may also suggest rustic gullibility
he has taken me for a green country girl, impressed with him because he is from the city and dressed in fine clothes — Sherwood Anderson
raw suggests outward uncertainty or awkward blundering due to lack of experience and training
they think him raw, brusque, and uncultivated. He does not know the ritual … knowledge of which, acquired by long experience, is the mark of fit membership in the society — W.G.Sumner