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HOW TO PRONOUNCE

gnarly

/ˈnɑɹli/

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American Pronunciation Guide · 0:31
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What does gnarly mean?

adjective

  1. Having or characterized by gnarls; gnarled.
  2. (slang) Unpleasant, awful, ugly.
  3. (slang) Of music or a sound: harsh.
More meanings (2)

adjective

  1. (dated, slang) Excellent; attractive.
  2. (dated, slang) Dangerous; difficult.

Definitions regrouped for readability · CC BY-SA 4.0

IPA pronunciation

/ˈnɑɹli/

Wiktionary contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0

Pronunciation varies by speaker and region. About these dictionary pronunciations.

In the pages of books

See this word in context.

By October 1 the tops were still small and a little gnarly; big roots had not yet formed.
Steve SolomonGardening without irrigation : $b or without much, anywayProject Gutenberg ebook #4512
The plants were dwarfed, foliage wrinkled and rusty, and fruit misshapen, like small, gnarly apples.
Edward Payson RoeSuccess with Small FruitsProject Gutenberg ebook #6117
More book examples (2)
They cannot be too gnarly and crabbed and rusty to look at.
Henry David ThoreauWild ApplesProject Gutenberg ebook #4066
The peat-bogs of Scania have yielded a bone fish-hook seven centimetres long, which is considered very ancient, and the Museum of Stettin possesses one, also very old, found in a gnarly deposit of Pomerania.
Jean-François-Albert du Pouget, marquis de NadaillacManners and Monuments of Prehistoric PeoplesTranslated by N. D'AnversProject Gutenberg ebook #3309