horrible

1 of 2

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

horribleness

2 of 2

noun

hor·​ri·​ble·​ness

plural -es

: the quality or state of being horrible

Synonyms of horrible

Adjective

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

Examples of horrible in a Sentence

Adjective

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

Adjective

Brian Cashman backed himself into this corner and did a horrible job at the trade deadline. — Chuck Murr, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026

But the Chinese way will cause a proliferation of talent, usage, data—until something horrible happens. — Evan Osnos, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026

The Badgers have had horrible injury luck, which has led to bad QB play the past few years. — Antonio Morales, New York Times, 27 July 2026

Dozens of immigrants who were previously detained for months at Alligator Alcatraz are now languishing and enduring horrible treatment at the Federal Detention Facility in Downtown Miami. — Thomas Kennedy, Sun Sentinel, 26 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

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

Noun

Middle English orriblenesse, horriblenesse, from orrible, horrible + -nesse -ness

First Known Use

Adjective

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