Some words are, or WERE, "loaded" words. Some IDIOT misuses them, they take off, and they use this word improperly. Racist, mean, and rude, or three such words. A "teacher" I once had called these "Code words"! That was her term for words that had no meaning but were meant to be social, show standing, or simply convey emotion.
You may have been impolite. You may have shown a lack of courtesy. It may have SOUNDED mean. It was NOT rude and, apparently, was NOT mean!
Quote:
1. discourteous or impolite, esp. in a deliberate way: a rude reply.
2. without culture, learning, or refinement: rude, illiterate peasants.
3. rough in manners or behavior; unmannerly; uncouth.
4. rough, harsh, or ungentle: rude hands.
5. roughly wrought, built, or formed; of a crude construction or kind: a rude cottage.
6. not properly or fully developed; raw; unevolved: a rude first stage of development.
7. harsh to the ear: rude sounds.
8. without artistic elegance; of a primitive simplicity: a rude design.
9. violent or tempestuous, as the waves.
10. robust, sturdy, or vigorous: rude strength.
11. approximate or tentative: a rude first calculation of costs
Historically, the type of rude they would be referring to is 2 and 3. 1 would be in that context.
BTW. I hate that show also! Why do so many have such STUPID shows!?!? Now robot chicken is RUDE! IT is MEAN! ****YOU***** would have to try HARD to top it!
For those that don't know, robot chicken is a show that uses a number of DUMB methods in a CRUDE way to play out scenes. It may consist of dolls and/or clay with stop motion photography. They say CRUDE, DEMEANING, RUDE, MEAN things about various things that may even represent people currently in the news. It basically tries to amuse people using puerile humor.
I swear, it sounds like I am making it up, but I am NOT! It is worse than the worst on SNL!