Definition of "cross-grained" []

• Having an irregular, transverse, or diagonal grain, as opposed to a parallel grain. (adjective)
• Troublesome to deal with; contrary. (adjective)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Hugh Scott, an officer at Fort Sill and a great friend to Indians, described him as “an unlovely character, a cross-grained, mean, selfish old curmudgeon.”"
• "As they took their departure the Brule chief seemed to stare particularly at me, so once they were out, and Allison was exploding in pique at what he called "their cross-grained and sullen demeanour, upon my word, like the spoiled children they are!","
• "Rather, most frequently, the cause of the popularity of cross-grained analysis of a given book is the sheer astonishing mediocrity of the material, which thereby turns it into Real Trash: so awful you (and your friends) have simply GOT to read it, just for the fun of attacking it!"