gnarly

adjective

ˈnär-lē 

gnarlier; gnarliest

1

: gnarled

gnarly branches

2

slang : very bad: such as

a

: very difficult or challenging to deal with

a gnarly [=thorny, knotty] problem

gnarly conditions

Having … skidded around gnarly hairpin turns … , the two bikers pedaled furiously for the finish.

—Austin Murphy

b

: nasty, unpleasant

"This guy has some pretty gnarly karma coming …"

—Drew Barrymore

c

: arousing disgust or distaste : gross

A cute toe polish can't save gnarly, callused soles.

—Jessica R. White

" … It'll be kind of a gruesome death. You know, its fur will start falling out, it'll develop gnarly sores all over its body. … "

—David Randall

3

slang : cool, excellent

After initially wiping out on the left wave, [Filipe] Toledo responded with a gnarly air reverse on the right and was rewarded with a 9.27.

—Hanford Sentinel

especially : having a pleasingly or impressively rugged or rough quality

He played in the NFL, but then got bored with football and became a FBI agent. He was a gnarly dude.

—Reece Kelley Graham

And yet [Mark] Knopfler built a reputation as an intensely creative virtuoso (not to mention an ace songwriter), showing remarkable command over a range of tones and textures—from the gnarly distortion on hit single "Money for Nothing" to the stinging precision of "Tunnel of Love."

—Rolling Stone

Examples of gnarly in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Don’t let your trip be interrupted by a gnarly sunburn, and come prepared with sunscreen—especially for your face, which will likely get the most exposure. —Abbey Hudetz, Travel + Leisure, 16 Apr. 2026

The Mummy is Cronin’s third feature, a noxious and gnarly enough reimagining of Universal’s franchise of the same name that began in 1932. —Gregory Nussen, Deadline, 16 Apr. 2026

Weapons filmmaker Zach Cregger, who is helming the new reboot movie based on the beloved video game series, took the stage at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas on Monday to debut the first look at the gnarly zombie project. —Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 14 Apr. 2026

One user soundtracked a video of their homemade shrimp alfredo turning a gnarly brown shade. —Luke Chinman, PEOPLE, 8 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

see gnarled

First Known Use

1760, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for gnarly

• barley
• charley
• charlie
• marly
• bizarrely