coarse

Meanings

1. 1
   adj

   Rough to the touch, or made of large, thick particles.

   The beach was covered in coarse sand.

2. 2
   adj

   Rude or lacking good manners.

   He shocked the guests with his coarse jokes.

3. 3
   adj

   Of low or inferior quality.

   The shirt was made of cheap, coarse cloth.

Adjectival use of course that diverged in spelling in the 18th century. The sense developed from '(following) the usual course' (cf. of course) to 'ordinary, common' to 'lacking refinement', with 'not fine, granular' arising from its application to cloth. Compare the development of mean.

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