horrible

adjective

hor·​ri·​ble ˈhȯr-ə-bəl 

ˈhär-

1

: marked by or arousing painful and intense fear, dread, dismay, or aversion : marked by or arousing horror

a horrible accident

2

: extremely bad or unpleasant

a horrible mistake

horrible food

horrible noun

horribleness noun

horribly

ˈhȯr-ə-blē 

ˈhär-

adverb

Synonyms of horrible

• horrific
• gruesome
• terrible
• shocking
• nightmare
• awful

Examples of horrible in a Sentence

He suffered a horrible death.

The crime scene was too horrible to describe.

The team had a horrible season last year.

He realized that he had made a horrible mistake.

Recent Examples on the Web

At its worst, cognitive impairment can be a horrible, life-altering disease for patient and loved ones. — Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026

Doubs had a horrible debut in the league’s season opener last week against the Seattle Seahawks. — Daniel Popper, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026

By the time of the horrible accident in 1829, the deodand was on its way out. — Amelia Soth, JSTOR Daily, 16 Sep. 2026

Much has been written about the power of artificial intelligence to improve life in myriad ways, but also about its truly horrible effects—now and going forward—if it isn’t managed properly. — Nadine Hack, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English orible, horrible, borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Latin horribilis, from horrēre "to be stiffly erect, bristle (of hair, weapons, plants), shudder, shiver" + -ibilis "capable of exhibiting or causing (the action of the verb)" — more at horror entry 1, -able

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for horrible

• adorable
• deplorable
• storable

Kids Definition

horrible

adjective

hor·​ri·​ble ˈhȯr-ə-bəl 

ˈhär-

1

: marked by or arousing horror

2

: extremely unpleasant or bad

horrible food

horribly

-blē 

adverb