scunner
/ˈskʌnə
/chiefly Scottish
noun
1A strong dislike: why have you a scunner against Esme?...
- The jury obviously took a scunner (an intense disliking) to the plaintiff and the plaintiff's case.
- But he does harbour this horrible dread of dentistry which became a real scunner when he suffered a bout of toothache.
- Roth takes an especial scunner to poor Kentucky, his locus of American evil.
1.1A source of irritation or strong dislike.Against that dark, wavy-haired, bespectacled and pompous little individual, I had taken an instant scunner.
verb [no object]
Feel disgust or strong dislike: (as adjective scunnered) he seemed even more scunnered with me than before...
- Somebody might inform him that while he may know the Danish and English words for the feelings he has experienced this week, he should be aware they could best be described, in Scottish terms, as scunnered.
- I'm a wee bit scunnered with football at the moment, as you can imagine.
- Scunnered with the malign Scottish press, scunnered with his own backbenchers, scunnered with the amateurism and ineptness of the parliament.
Origin
Late Middle English (first used in the sense 'shrink back with fear'): of unknown origin.
Rhymes
- -lite
- liter
- literacy
- literacy hour
- literacy test
- Literae Humaniores
- literal
- literalism
- literalist
- literalistic
- literality
- literalization
- literalize
- literalizer
- literally
- literal-minded
- literalness
- literarian
- literarily
- literariness
- literarism
- literary
- literary adviser
- literary advisor
- literary agency