lousier; lousiest
1
: infested (see infest sense 2) with lice
the ragged, lousy tribesmen—
T. E. Lawrence
T. E. Lawrence2
a
: totally repulsive (see repulsive sense 3) : contemptible
a lousy way of getting even
b
: miserably poor or inferior
got lousy grades
c
: somewhat ill
felt lousy after dinner
d
: amply supplied : replete
lousy with money
3
of silk
: fuzzy and specked because of splitting of the fiber
Synonyms
Examples of lousy in a Sentence
She got lousy grades in high school.
I like the work, but the pay is lousy.
He was a lousy husband.
They did a lousy job.
He drank too much and felt lousy the next morning.
It's a lousy, rainy day.
That's a lousy way to treat a friend.
Recent Examples on the Web
And that is a lousy characteristic for a great political party to have.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 28 Mar. 2024
In his deterministic 2005 book Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Jared Diamond claimed the occupants were lousy land managers.
—Daniel Lewis, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024
Their citizens also require healthy climates — not lousy air.
—Ken Silverstein, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024
Betts is being asked to change positions because, despite having all winter to figure this out, the Dodgers just now decided that Lux is a lousy shortstop.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately, these early clocks were lousy timekeepers, their ability to keep time deteriorating along with the battery.
—IEEE Spectrum, 29 Feb. 2024
It's estimated that each time an employee witnesses lousy customer service and fails to speak up costs $54,511 a year.
—Dr. Cinque Parker, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024
While Morgan’s slate isn’t completely clean after the past three years of lousy results, his promotion (and the subsequent restructuring of the front office) signals a new beginning of sorts for the franchise.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 26 Feb. 2024
John Cheeks checked the D.C. Lottery website around midnight on Jan. 7, 2023, after having a lousy day.
—Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2024
Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 28 Mar. 2024
In his deterministic 2005 book Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Jared Diamond claimed the occupants were lousy land managers.
—Daniel Lewis, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024
Their citizens also require healthy climates — not lousy air.
—Ken Silverstein, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024
Betts is being asked to change positions because, despite having all winter to figure this out, the Dodgers just now decided that Lux is a lousy shortstop.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2024
Unfortunately, these early clocks were lousy timekeepers, their ability to keep time deteriorating along with the battery.
—IEEE Spectrum, 29 Feb. 2024
It's estimated that each time an employee witnesses lousy customer service and fails to speak up costs $54,511 a year.
—Dr. Cinque Parker, Forbes, 27 Feb. 2024
While Morgan’s slate isn’t completely clean after the past three years of lousy results, his promotion (and the subsequent restructuring of the front office) signals a new beginning of sorts for the franchise.
—Mike Kaye, Charlotte Observer, 26 Feb. 2024
John Cheeks checked the D.C. Lottery website around midnight on Jan. 7, 2023, after having a lousy day.
—Jonathan Edwards, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'lousy.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near lousy
Cite this Entry
“Lousy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/lousy. Accessed 16 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
lousy
adjective
lousier; lousiest
1
: infested with lice
2
a
: totally disgusting : contemptible
b
: of very poor quality
got lousy grades
c
: somewhat ill
felt lousy after dinner
d
: well supplied
lousy with money
Medical Definition
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