Bad - Cambridge English Thesaurus With Synonyms And Examples

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Synonyms and antonyms of bad in English

bad

Thesaurus > bad weather, conditions, situations, etc. > bad These are words and phrases related to bad. Click on any word or phrase to go to its thesaurus page. Or, go to the definition of bad.

BAD WEATHER, CONDITIONS, SITUATIONS, ETC.

If the weather is bad, we'll have to find something else to do.

Synonyms and examples

poor She's 87 and in poor health.dire The predictions for the economy are dire.grim She was quickly brought back to the grim reality of her life.awful The smell from the bins was awful.terrible I've had a really terrible day.horrible it was a really horrible place to be.dreadful mainly UK The forecast for tomorrow is dreadful.frightful old-fashioned informal Today is going to be a frightful bore.horrid old-fashioned informal It was a horrid shock to see the letter.fearful We suddenly heard a fearful bang.horrendous The traffic getting here was horrendous.ghastly It all happened because of a ghastly misunderstanding.atrocious Conditions on the mountain are absolutely atrocious.horrific The bus was involved in a horrific accident.abysmal The government has an abysmal record on healthcare.appalling We are working to end the appalling suffering of animals.

Antonym and example

good The weather's been good all week. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

evilwickedabominablesinfulimpure literary or humorouslow/poor/bad qualitymediocre disapprovinginferiorcheap disapprovingcheap and nasty UKbad athopelessuseless mainly UK informalrubbish UK informalincompetentineptinexpertweakunskilledamateurish disapproving Learn more Bad weather, conditions, situations, etc. are unpleasant and cause difficulties or harm. You can describe a person who behaves in a way that is morally wrong, or a morally wrong action, as a bad person, action, etc. Something that is of bad quality is of a low or unacceptable standard. If someone is bad at something, they lack skill in that doing something.

A BAD PERSON, ACTION, ETC.

A very bad man is getting what he deserves.

Synonyms and examples

evil He was an evil dictator who murdered his own people.wicked Rapunzel was trapped inside a tower by a wicked witch.awful She was truly awful to him through their entire marriage.terrible He was a terrible husband.dreadful No one will own up to the dreadful deed.abominable Nothing can ever excuse such abominable behaviour.sinful Their actions are considered sinful by the Church.impure literary or humorous She was labelled immoral and impure for daring to speak publicly about sexuality.

Antonym and example

good She's a good person who gives to charity. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

poordiregrimhorriblefrightful old-fashioned informalhorrid old-fashioned informalfearfulhorrendousghastlyatrocioushorrificabysmalappallinglow/poor/bad qualitymediocre disapprovinginferiorcheap disapprovingcheap and nasty UKbad athopelessuseless mainly UK informalrubbish UK informalincompetentineptinexpertweakunskilledamateurish disapproving Learn more Bad weather, conditions, situations, etc. are unpleasant and cause difficulties or harm. You can describe a person who behaves in a way that is morally wrong, or a morally wrong action, as a bad person, action, etc. Something that is of bad quality is of a low or unacceptable standard. If someone is bad at something, they lack skill in that doing something.

OF BAD QUALITY

The food wasn’t as bad as I’d expected.

Synonyms and examples

poor Their efforts produced extremely poor results.low/poor/bad quality Their sausages are made with low-quality meat.mediocre disapproving The striker has been dropped after a mediocre performance.inferior The copies are of inferior quality.cheap disapproving The whole place reeked of cheap perfume.cheap and nasty UK The supermarkets have been flooded with cheap and nasty wine.

Antonym and example

good The pub has good food. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

diregrimawfulterriblehorribledreadful mainly UKfrightful old-fashioned informalhorrid old-fashioned informalfearfulhorrendousghastlyatrocioushorrificabysmalappallingevilwickedabominablesinfulimpure literary or humorousbad athopelessuseless mainly UK informalrubbish UK informalincompetentineptinexpertweakunskilledamateurish disapproving Learn more Bad weather, conditions, situations, etc. are unpleasant and cause difficulties or harm. You can describe a person who behaves in a way that is morally wrong, or a morally wrong action, as a bad person, action, etc. Something that is of bad quality is of a low or unacceptable standard. If someone is bad at something, they lack skill in that doing something.

PAINFUL

The pain was so bad that I couldn't walk.

Synonyms and examples

painful Her ankle was still painful if she put weight on it.sore My feet are sore from walking around all day.tender The glands in my neck feel really tender.sensitive My face was bright red and sensitive to the touch.excruciating His injury caused excruciating headaches.agonizing She felt an agonizing blow to the back of her head.severe See your doctor if the pain is severe.unbearable The pain was unbearable. I could hardly breathe.acute They treat patients with acute pain from surgery and accidents.chronic Hundreds of people are living with chronic pain.sharp He complained of a sharp pain that felt like a knife going into his back.

Antonym and example

painless It is a completely painless procedure. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

painagonysorenessachediscomfortstingthrobthrobbingstabstabbing paintwingehurtsmartrubact upplay up UK informalbe killing you informal Learn more Pain is a feeling of physical suffering that you get from an injury or an illness. You can also talk about things that cause pain. You can call the things that cause you physical pain painful.

HAVING A BAD RESULT OR OUTCOME

He got a bad case of food poisoning.

Synonyms and examples

serious Her condition is not thought to be serious.big Online fraud is a big problem.major It's not a major problem, but it does need to be taken care of.grave The public are in grave danger.severe He suffered severe damage to his right ankle during the opening match of the season.life-threatening His injuries are not thought to be life-threatening.grievous formal Her death is a grievous loss to the whole of the community.urgent Suddenly, protecting the public from dangerous chemicals became an urgent matter.

Antonym and example

minor He was charged with a minor traffic offence. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

earnestsobersombre UKsolemngrimunsmilingstony-faced UKdourhumourless UKpo-faced UK informal disapproving Learn more If someone or something lacks humour and is not meant to be funny, they are serious. If something such as a problem, illness, etc. has a bad outcome, it is serious.

NOT PRODUCING A DESIRED RESULT

Sales have been really bad this quarter.

Synonyms and examples

unsuccessful Our attempts to change the law were unsuccessful.failed The company went bankrupt pouring money into yet another failed product.fruitless All our pleas that she remain in university were fruitless - she left anyway.unfruitful The negotiations were unfruitful.unproductive We've had a terribly unproductive meeting.ineffective The trial shows that this drug is an ineffective treatment for cancer.non-effective This approach to increasing revenue was non-effective.unviable The party's plan to drastically cut taxes was economically unviable. nonviable The business was deemed commercially non-viable.unavailing formal literary His attentions to the heiress were courteous but unavailing. vain He campaigned night and day in a vain attempt to win the party nomination. unpromising Millions was spent on developing the treatment, but early tests show it is unpromising.disastrous He made a disastrous foray into politics.pathetic disapproving His pathetic attempt at a joke failed spectacularly.be dead in the water They pulled funding, so the project is dead in the water. go adrift informal After the kids left home, their marriage went adrift.

Antonym and example

successful She ran a very successful campaign. Go to the thesaurus article about these synonyms and antonyms of bad.

See words related to bad

frustratedstrugglingon the ropes informalnot last longwashed upon the rocks informal Learn more If something is unsuccessful, it does not produce a desired result. If someone is unsuccessful, they are not acheiving wealth, popularity, or success . Cambridge English Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press

bad | American Thesaurus

bad

adjective These are words and phrases related to bad. Click on any word or phrase to go to its thesaurus page. Or, go to the definition of bad. She's a very bad singer. Your car won't start if the battery is bad. We expect bad weather. She gets bad grades.

Synonyms

not goodpoorinferiorwretchedawfulterribledreadfulbelow standardsubstandardbelow parsecond-ratelousyfaultydefectiveimperfectdeficientlackinginadequatevaluelessuselessunproductiveunfitbaneful

Antonyms

fineexcellentabove averagesuperiorfirst-rate Lying is a bad thing to do.

Synonyms

immoralunethicalsinfulevilwickednaughtywrongoffensivecorruptunprincipledopprobriousvillainousfalsedisreputablecriminaldetestabledeplorableperfidiousreprehensiblebasemeanvilenefariousbeastlyrotten

Antonyms

virtuousmoralethicalrightrighteousexemplaryhigh-minded You exercised bad judgment. Her bad spelling kept her from becoming a secretary.

Synonyms

erroneouswrongincorrectnot correctimperfectunsoundfallaciousfaultyquestionableinefficientineffectivepoor

Antonyms

correctrightperfectsoundintelligent Too much candy is bad for your teeth.

Synonyms

harmfulunhealthyhurtfulinjuriousdetrimentaldistractivedisadvantageoustroublesomenonproductiveriskydangeroushazardousmenacing

Antonyms

beneficialhealthfulsalubriousharmlesssafe We were prepared for bad news. He's in a bad mood.

Synonyms

unpleasantunwelcomedisagreeabledisappointingdistresseddistressingdiscouragedsorrydiscouragingdisturbingregrettabletroubledtroublinggloomyglummelancholyjoylessgrimdishearteningunnervingdreadfulobnoxiouscrossangryshort-temperedoffensiveirascibleirritabletouchy

Antonyms

pleasantwelcomehearteningencouragingpromisinghopefulcheerfulcheeringhappyjoyfuljoyoussweetsmilinggood-temperedsweet-tempered Don't feel bad about breaking the glass. I feel bad about not being able to help you.

Synonyms

sorrysadregretfulremorsefulcontriteguiltyconscience-strickenterrible

Antonym

good Bad milk can make you sick.

Synonyms

spoiledrottendecayedfouldecomposedsourrancidturnedrankputrescentmoldymildewedcontaminatedpollutedtainted

Antonyms

freshsweetuncontaminated What's that bad smell?.

Synonyms

disagreeableunpleasantsickeningloathsomeodiousnastydistastefulfouldisgustingnauseatingputridfetidunpalatablebitteracridsourrevoltingrepulsivevilerepugnantnoxious

Antonyms

agreeablepleasantfragrantaromaticsweet I feel bad enough to go to the hospital.

Synonyms

illsicksicklyunwellailinginfirmindisposedunhealthyunder the weather

Antonyms

wellhealthysoundfit He has a bad toothache. They were in a bad accident.

Synonyms

severeharshterribleseriousgravedisastrouspainfulacutefrightfuldreadfulcalamitousdiretragicagonizingdistressingsearingexcruciatinggrievouswretchedmiserable

Antonyms

mildlightfrivoloustrivialunimportantminor

bad

nounYou must learn to take the bad with the good.

Synonyms

harmful thingssad eventsdisappointmentmisfortune

Antonym

good The bad people can be forgiven by God.

Synonyms

evilwickednessimmoralitysinoffenseswrongsvillainycrimes

Antonym

good Synonyms for bad from Random House Roget's College Thesaurus, Revised and Updated Edition © 2000 Random House, Inc.

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runny

UK /ˈrʌn.i/ US /ˈrʌn.i/

more liquid than usual

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  • BAD WEATHER, CONDITIONS, SITUATIONS, ETC.
  • A BAD PERSON, ACTION, ETC.
  • OF BAD QUALITY
  • PAINFUL
  • HAVING A BAD RESULT OR OUTCOME
  • NOT PRODUCING A DESIRED RESULT
American Thesaurus
  • adjective
  • noun
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