Definitions

terrible

[ter-uh-buhl] / ˈtɛr ə bəl /

ADJECTIVE

bad, horrible

Synonyms

STRONGEST

abhorrent appalling atrocious awesome awful dangerous dire disastrous disturbing dreadful frightful ghastly gruesome harrowing hideous horrendous horrid horrifying serious severe shocking unfortunate unpleasant

WEAK

awe-inspiring beastly desperate dread dreaded fearful hateful inconvenient loathsome monstrous obnoxious odious offensive petrifying poor repulsive revolting rotten unnerving unwelcome vile

Antonyms

STRONGEST

beautiful calming comforting delightful fortunate good happy inoffensive lucky mild nice pleasant pleasing trivial unimportant wonderful

WEAK

great

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.

"We do not want this terrible tragedy to be used to divide people or fuel hostility," they said.

From Barron's • Jun. 10, 2026

“Some journalist recently counted how many cops I’ve played and it was a terrible number,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 9, 2026

Sutton Council said it had not welcomed the increase, and called on the EA and the government to "answer the very real concerns of the community and explain this terrible decision".

From BBC • Jun. 7, 2026

As my wife held Charlie Kirk’s widow on the first day of her terrible sorrow, Erika told Usha between sobs that she regretted having only two kids with Charlie.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026

“I wish I hadn’t, though. It was pretty terrible, hearing all the things people said about me. Especially with the way Rachel kept bringing it up at school...”

From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows

Vocabulary lists containing terrible

Week 2 Vocabulary

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Spelling Practice, Unit 5

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Spelling Practice 2, Unit 8

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