When an awkward giant like Abraham Lincoln rose to the sublimest heights of oratory he did so because of the greatness of his soul-his very ruggedness of spirit and artless honesty were properly expressed in his gnarly body.
"The Art of Public Speaking"
Dale Carnagey (AKA Dale Carnegie) and J. Berg Esenwein
I don't care for that, the heart of the tree is very good and the sap still runs as in the old apple trees in my garden, which bear fruit all the better the more gnarly they are.
"The George Sand-Gustave Flaubert Letters"
George Sand, Gustave Flaubert Translated by A.L. McKensie
If the horn is not cut close enough to the head, an irregular, gnarly growth of horn is liable to follow.
"Special Report on Diseases of Cattle"
U.S. Department of Agriculture J.R. Mohler