sandpapery

1 7.0

Feels rough and slightly scratchy when you touch it

adjective
/ˈsændˌpeɪpəri/

: áspero

Meanwhile, sandpapery feline papillae are thought to retain saliva during self grooming, helping cats cool, detangle and distribute scents.

Examples

The sandpapery skin of the fish made it difficult to hold on to as I tried to catch it.
The surface of the old table felt sandpapery, making it uncomfortable to rest my arms on.
The blood spurted, and the creature paused to lick my head with a huge wet tongue that was rough and sandpapery, like a lion's.

Fiction book (1997)
The left sensitive side also hurts if I stretch it too widely or rub my fingers across it. After I stretch it in all directions to flatten it, it's like a sharp, sandpapery feel, very difficult to describe, but not as painful as it seems.

Blog text (5)
And so is your skin, as it quickly takes on a dull, sandpapery appearance, while torturing you with a tightness and itchiness your current moisture collection is unprepared to handle.

Blog text (32)
Her sandpapery hands showed signs of years spent working outdoors in the garden.

Synonyms

coarse

vssandpapery

29 3.7

A surface like sand or rough cloth that has large grains and is not smooth

is rough too but focuses on abrasive, fine particles not just big pieces

grainy

vssandpapery

24 3.7

Rough in feel or look because of many tiny pieces

is abrasive in feel rather than only having a granular appearance

textured

vssandpapery

17 4.1

Having a surface you can feel that is not smooth

is specifically abrasive in texture rather than merely patterned or uneven

scratchy

vssandpapery

14 3.2

Rough on the skin and slightly irritating

is more abrasive and intended to wear surfaces, not just irritate skin

gritty

vssandpapery

13 4.1

Has a rough texture with small hard grains

is similar but describes a flat, paperlike abrasive texture rather than loose particles

abrasive

vssandpapery

6 4.8

Able to wear away surfaces when rubbed

is rough and causes rubbing wear on contacted surfaces

coarse-grained

vssandpapery

1 4.8

A rough texture made of large visible grains

is abrasive in a finer, sandpaper-like way rather than large visible grains

scabrous

vssandpapery

1 9.9

Rough to the touch with many small bumps or scales

is abrasive via gritty particles rather than raised projections

barky

vssandpapery

1 7.7

A thing with a rough surface like the outer layer of a tree

is abrasive and grainy rather than patterned by natural layers

roughish

vssandpapery

1 5.4

Feels slightly rough to the touch

is rougher and clearly abrasive, not just slightly uneven

rough-textured

vssandpapery

1 3.7

A surface that feels bumpy or not smooth to the touch

is specifically abrasive and likelier to wear down other surfaces

sandlike

vssandpapery

1 3.9

Having a dry, rough feel like small loose grains

is rough and abrasive yet in a compact, paperlike surface form

coarse-textured

vssandpapery

1 4.9

Having a rough surface that feels slightly scratchy

is more abrasive and specifically similar to a rubbing paper surface

How Rough

abrasive

6 4.8

sandpapery

1 7.0

gritty

13 4.1

rough

144 1.0

smooth

224 1.0

Surface Forms

sandpapery positive

Morphology

sandpapery = sandpaper (transparent) = sand + paper + y

The adjective is directly formed from the noun 'sandpaper' with the productive adjectival suffix '-y', so its meaning is readily inferred from the base.

Etymology

Sandpapery comes from sandpaper, the rough paper with sand glued to it, and the ending -y which means 'having'. So sandpapery means 'having a rough, scratchy feel', like a voice, skin, or surface that feels like sandpaper.