Awful — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

adjective adverb /ˈȯ-fəl/ aw·ful

Meaning & Definition of Awful

Awful (adjective)

  1. extremely disagreeable or objectionable
  2. exceedingly great —used as an intensive
  3. inspiring awe

Awful (adverb)

  1. very, extremely

Awful (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment

    "that's an awful thing to say about someone"

    similar: abhorrent, abominable, appalling, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil, foul, fulsome, gross, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, loathsome, nasty, nauseating, nauseous, noisome, noxious, obnoxious, obscene, odious, offensive, rancid, repellent, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, scandalous, shocking, sickening, ugly
    related: exceptionable, objectionable, brackish, disagreeable, dislikable, unpleasant, contemptible, despicable, detestable, hard, hateful, unhealthy, unsavory, unwholesome, execrable, lousy, miserable, atrocious, frightful, ghastly, grim, grisly, gruesome, heinous, horrific, horrifying, lurid, macabre, monstrous, nightmarish, sick, sickish, sickly, terrible, unspeakable, vile, off-putting, undesirable, unwanted, unwelcome, barbarous, unchristian, uncivilized, ungodly, unholy, distressing, disturbing, upsetting
    opposite: innocuous, inoffensive
    near: acceptable, agreeable, alluring, appealing, attractive, blessed, congenial, darling, delectable, delicious, delightful, delightsome, desirable, dreamy, dulcet, enjoyable, felicitous, gratifying, heavenly, inviting, likable, luscious, nice, palatable, pleasant, pleasing, pleasurable, satisfying, savory, sweet, welcome, unexceptionable, unobjectionable, healthful, healthy, restorative, salubrious, salutary, wholesome

  2. causing wonder or astonishment

    "the awful power of Niagara Falls"

    similar: amazing, astonishing, astounding, awesome, eye-opening, fabulous, marvelous, miraculous, portentous, prodigious, staggering, stunning, stupendous, sublime, surprising, wonderful, wondrous
    related: incomprehensible, inconceivable, incredible, unbelievable, unimaginable, unthinkable, extraordinary, phenomenal, rare, sensational, spectacular, singular, uncommon, unique, unusual, unwonted, conspicuous, notable, noticeable, outstanding, remarkable, impressive, smashing, striking, mind-bending, mind-blowing, mind-boggling, animating, energizing, enlightening, enlivening, exciting, galvanizing, invigorating, stimulating, alluring, attracting, attractive, beguiling, bewitching, captivating, charming, enchanting, entertaining, enthralling, fascinating, interesting
    near: unimpressive, uninspiring, unremarkable, boring, dull, jading, monotonous, tedious, tiring, uninspired, uninteresting, wearisome, weary, wearying, common, customary, mundane, normal, ordinary, typical, unexceptional, usual, draining, enervating, exhausting, fatiguing, wearing, debilitating, enfeebling, demoralizing, discouraging, disheartening, dispiriting

  3. extremely disturbing or repellent

    "spare me the awful details of the murder"

    similar: appalling, atrocious, dreadful, frightful, ghastly, grisly, gruesome, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, horrific, horrifying, lurid, macabre, monstrous, nightmare, nightmarish, shocking, terrible, terrific
    related: alarming, bloodcurdling, dire, direful, fearful, fearsome, forbidding, formidable, frightening, gut-wrenching, hair-raising, heart-stopping, intimidating, redoubtable, scary, terrifying, abhorrent, deplorable, disagreeable, disgusting, distasteful, loathsome, nauseating, noisome, obnoxious, obscene, offensive, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, sickening, abominable, evil, foul, heinous, noxious, odious, unspeakable, vile, grotesque, ugly, unsightly
    near: agreeable, appealing, attractive, delectable, delicious, delightful, enjoyable, enticing, inviting, pleasant, pleasing, pleasurable, satisfying, welcome, cheering, comforting, soothing

  4. extremely unsatisfactory

    "I can't believe I spent good money to see that movie—it was awful"

    similar: abysmal, atrocious, dismal, execrable, horrible, lousy, punk, rotten, sucky (slang), terrible, wretched
    related: bad, deficient, inferior, off, poor, substandard, wanting, contemptible, miserable, shameful, defective, faulty, flawed, low-grade, mediocre, reprehensible, second-rate, bum, useless, valueless, worthless, inadequate, insufficient, lacking, abominable, damnable, fiendish, odious, vile
    opposite: bitchin' (slang), great, marvelous, wonderful
    near: choice, excellent, exceptional, first-class, first-rate, premium, prime, superior, adequate, sufficient, acceptable, satisfactory

Awful (adverb) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

  1. to a great degree

    "that's awful sweet of you"

    similar: achingly, almighty, archly, awfully, badly, beastly, blisteringly, bone, colossally, corking, cracking, damn, damned, dang, deadly, desperately, eminently, enormously, especially, ever, exceedingly, extra, extremely, fabulously, fantastically, far, fiercely, filthy, frightfully, full, greatly, heavily, highly, hugely, immensely, incredibly, intensely, jolly, majorly, mightily, mighty, monstrous (chiefly dialect), mortally, most, much, particularly, passing, rattling, real, really, right, roaring, roaringly, seriously, severely, so, sore, sorely, spanking, specially, stinking, such, super, supremely, surpassingly, terribly, that, thumping, too, unco, uncommonly, vastly, very, vitally, way, whacking, wicked, wildly, a lot, as all get-out, good and
    related: absolutely, altogether, completely, downright, entirely, flat-out, fully, positively, purely, radically, thoroughly, totally, utterly, wholly, deeply, profoundly, exceptionally, notably, remarkably, considerably, extensively, significantly, substantially, appreciably, discernibly, markedly, noticeably, obviously, palpably, plainly, visibly, abundantly, plentifully, astronomically, grandly, monstrously, monumentally, excessively, obscenely, overmuch, amazingly, astonishingly, staggeringly
    opposite: little, negligibly, nominally, slightly, somewhat
    near: meagerly, scantily, barely, hardly, just, marginally, minimally, scarcely

Related Entry: God-awful (adjective)

God-awful is a different word from Awful. The synonyms below are for god-awful, not for awful.

  1. as in horrid, awful

    similar: abhorrent, abominable, appalling, awful, beastly, bilious, disgusting, dreadful, foul, ghastly, gnarly (slang), gross, hateful, hellish, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, invidious, loathsome, nauseating, nauseous, noisome, obnoxious, obscene, odious, offensive, repellent, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, revulsive, scandalous, seamy, shocking, sick, sickening, ugly, unholy, vile, villainous, bad, bitter, disagreeable, displeasing, distasteful, harsh, icky, nasty, rotten, sour, uncongenial, unlovely, unpalatable, unpleasant, unpleasing, unsavory, unwelcome, wicked, yucky, aggravating, annoying, galling, irritating, vexing, crappy (slang), cruddy, crummy, lousy, miserable, sucky (slang), wretched
    opposite: agreeable, congenial, good, grateful, gratifying, nice, palatable, pleasant, pleasing, pleasurable, satisfying, welcome, delectable, delicious, delightful, dreamy, felicitous, amiable, charming, cheery, friendly, jolly, kindly, sweet

Synonyms, Thesaurus & Another Word for Awful

The most common words with a similar meaning to Awful:

Slang: sucky
Chiefly dialect: monstrous
abhorrent, abominable, appalling, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil, foul, fulsome, gross, hideous, horrendous, horrible, horrid, loathsome, nasty, nauseating, nauseous, noisome, noxious, obnoxious, obscene, odious, offensive, rancid, repellent, repugnant, repulsive, revolting, scandalous, shocking, sickening, ugly, amazing, astonishing, astounding, awesome, eye-opening, fabulous, marvelous

Antonyms & Opposite Words for Awful

Words with the opposite meaning of Awful:

innocuous, inoffensive, bitchin', great, marvelous, wonderful, little, negligibly, nominally, slightly, somewhat

Related Words for Awful

exceptionable, objectionable, brackish, disagreeable, dislikable, unpleasant, contemptible, despicable, detestable, hard, hateful, unhealthy, unsavory, unwholesome, miserable, grim, heinous, sick, sickish, sickly, unspeakable, vile, off-putting, undesirable, unwanted, unwelcome, barbarous, unchristian, uncivilized, ungodly

Near Antonyms of Awful

acceptable, agreeable, alluring, appealing, attractive, blessed, congenial, darling, delectable, delicious, delightful, delightsome, desirable, dreamy, dulcet, enjoyable, felicitous, gratifying, heavenly, inviting, likable, luscious, nice, palatable, pleasant, pleasing, pleasurable, satisfying, savory, sweet

Word Forms of Awful

Derived words: awfulness (noun)

Origin & Etymology of Awful

Middle English aghful, awful "frightful, terrifying, commanding great respect, worthy of reverence," from aw, awe "terror, dread, extreme reverence" + -ful -ful:1 awe:1

First known use: 14th century

Vocabulary Lists & Topics for Awful

Words & Phrases Containing Awful

god-awful, an awful lot, an awful lot of

Frequently Asked Questions about Awful

What does "Awful" mean?

"Awful" means extremely disagreeable or objectionable. As an an adjective and an adverb, it is defined as: extremely disagreeable or objectionable. It has 5 distinct senses.

What is another word for "Awful"?

Other words for "Awful" include abhorrent, abominable, appalling, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil and foul. The best synonym depends on which meaning of "Awful" you intend.

What are different ways to say "Awful"?

There are 319 words and phrases with a similar meaning to "Awful". Common alternatives include abhorrent, abominable, appalling, disgusting, distasteful, dreadful, evil, foul, fulsome and gross.

What is the opposite of "Awful"?

Antonyms of "Awful" include innocuous, inoffensive, bitchin', great, marvelous, wonderful, little and negligibly. Near antonyms include acceptable, agreeable, alluring and appealing.

How do you use "Awful" in a sentence?

Examples of "Awful" in a sentence: "that's an awful thing to say about someone"; "the awful power of Niagara Falls"; "spare me the awful details of the murder".

Is "Awful" a noun, verb, or adjective?

"Awful" can be used as an adjective and an adverb, depending on the context.

Is "Awful" useful for IELTS, TOEFL, and other English exams?

As an A2-level word, "Awful" is typical of Cambridge A2 Key (KET), PTE Academic 30–42, TOEIC Listening & Reading 225+.

How do you pronounce "Awful"?

"Awful" is pronounced /ˈȯ-fəl/ and divided into syllables as aw·ful.