From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Gruff \Gruff\ (gr[u^]f), adjective [Compar. {Gruffer} (gr[u^]f"[~e]r); superl. {Gruffest}.] [D. grof; akin to G. grob, OHG. gerob, grob, Dan. grov, Sw. grof, perh. akin to AS. rc['o]fan to break, Z. reavc, rupture, g- standing for the AS. prefix ge-, Goth. ga-.] Of a rough or stern manner, voice, or countenance; sour; surly; severe; harsh. --Addison.
Gruff, disagreeable, sarcastic remarks. --Thackeray. -- {Gruff"ly}, adverb -- {Gruff"ness}, noun
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
adjective
1: brusque and surly and forbidding; "crusty remarks"; "a crusty old man"; "his curmudgeonly temper"; "gruff manner"; "a gruff reply" [syn: {crusty}, {curmudgeonly}, {ill-humored}, {ill-humoured}]
2: deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion; "gruff voices"; "the dog's gruff barking"; "hoarse cries"; "makes all the instruments sound powerful but husky"- Virgil Thomson [syn: {hoarse}, {husky}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
86 Moby Thesaurus words for "gruff": abrupt, acerb, acid, acrimonious, aggressive, bad-tempered, bearish, beastly, biting, bluff, blunt, boorish, brash, brassy, brazen, brusque, cantankerous, caustic, cavalier, choked, churlish, coarse, crabbed, crabby, cracked, croaking, croaky, cross, crotchety, crusty, curt, cutting, deep, dour, dry, fierce, grouchy, growling, grumbling, grumbly, grumpish, grumpy, guttural, harsh, harsh-sounding, hoarse, husky, ill-humored, ill-natured, irascible, irritable, low, metallic, morose, peevish, petulant, querulous, ragged, rasping, raucid, raucous, rough, roupy, rude, saturnine, severe, sharp, short, short-tempered, snippety, snippy, sour, squawking, squawky, stertorous, stinging, strangled, sulky, sullen, surly, testy, thick, throaty, tinny, truculent, uncivil
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