gruesome

[groo-suhm] / ˈgru səm /

ADJECTIVE

horrible, awful

Synonyms

STRONGEST

appalling frightful ghastly grim grisly hideous horrendous horrid horrific horrifying lurid macabre morbid shocking terrible terrifying ugly weird

WEAK

abominable daunting fearful grody gross loathsome monstrous offensive repugnant repulsive sick spine-tingling

Antonyms

STRONGEST

attractive cheerful comforting delightful gentle good happy nice normal pleasant pleasing wonderful

WEAK

pretty

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

It’s also getting more gruesome, and therefore less fun.

From Salon • Apr. 8, 2026

There are also concerns about the gruesome foot blisters that hampered Djokovic.

From BBC • Jan. 29, 2026

But there were no crashes on a course that has a track record for some gruesome wipeouts and evacuation by helicopter.

From Barron's • Jan. 24, 2026

It’s an example that underscores how our gruesome microbial adversaries are not, after all, very old.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 23, 2026

Not only that, but the whole gruesome tale was set in rhyming verse of a most eccentric nature.

From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood

Vocabulary lists containing gruesome

The Devil's Arithmetic

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A Long Way Gone

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Beowulf vocabulary

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