Churls

/tʃɜːrlz/ noun

Definition

Plural of churl; multiple rude or impolite people, or historically, multiple peasants or commoners.

Etymology

Regular pluralization of 'churl' with English '-s' suffix. The word's usage shifted from referring to a social class to describing character, but pluralization remained straightforward.

Kelly Says

The word 'churl' appears throughout Middle English literature as both a social descriptor and character insult, but it never became as culturally entrenched as 'villain' (originally a peasant farmer, now meaning evil person)—geography determined which class insults survived.

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.