1. the quality or state of being crabby; irritability or bad temper
2. the quality of being difficult to read or understand; illegibility or obscurity
Usage: less common

Examples

• His crabbedness made it difficult for coworkers to approach him with new ideas.
• The old man's crabbedness was legendary; no one wanted to sit near him at dinner.
• She woke up with a crabbedness that lasted all morning after a poor night's sleep.
• The crabbedness of his handwriting made the letter nearly impossible to decipher.
• Despite his crabbedness, his family knew he cared deeply about them.