ugly

play

adjective ug·ly \ˈə-glē\

Definition of ugly

uglier

;

ugliest

1 : frightful, dire
2a : offensive to the sight : hideousb : offensive or unpleasant to any sense
3 : morally offensive or objectionable corruption—the ugliest stain of all
4a : likely to cause inconvenience or discomfort the ugly truthb : surly, quarrelsome an ugly disposition

uglily

play \ˈə-glə-lē\ adverb

See ugly defined for English-language learners

See ugly defined for kids

Examples of ugly in a Sentence

an ugly shade of green
They avoided what could have been an ugly situation.
He has an ugly disposition.

Recent Examples of ugly from the Web

Any American who travels to any foreign country must always strive to not be an ugly American.

— Cincinnati.com, "Ch@troom: Response for Warmbier? Not so fast", 5 July 2017
Four years ago, Eileen Gonzales and her live-in fiancé had a painful, ugly breakup.

— lisa haney, Good Housekeeping, "How I Dropped 62 Pounds and a Bad Relationship", 30 June 2017
The season-long numbers on Hamels paint an equally ugly picture.

— michael beller, SI.com, "Cole Hamels is struggling to miss bats, and it may signal long-term problems for the Rangers", 28 June 2017
This is some pretty ugly stuff, and the pushback could have been messy.

— shanita hubbard, The Root, "Hip-Hop, Mental Health and Telling Our Stories: Combat Jack Talks the Life and Death of Chris Lighty", 17 June 2017
The bizarre and ugly public spat between a powerful college football coach and an athlete who wanted out has by now peaked and died, inevitably ending with the young man being granted the right to transfer.

— sam mellinger, kansascity, "Mellinger Minutes: Chiefs, Maclin, Royals & a rule that could’ve saved Bill Snyder", 6 June 2017
While Battlefield 1 is surprisingly excellent, its take on World War I is still all explosions and Hollywood glitz, glamorous even in its ugliest moments.

— hayden dingman, PCWorld, "Tannenberg expands Verdun's World War I horrors to the Eastern front", 24 May 2017
This includes the good, the bad, the ugly, and what can only be categorized as the very weird: crying, kissing, fighting, vomiting, putting on a full face of makeup.

— nicole c. kear, The Cut, "What I’ve Learned From Riding the Subway With My Kids", 22 May 2017
DeForest Buckner, DT 49ers The 2016 season was an ugly one for the 49ers defense, but Buckner was one of the few bright spots.

— steven ruiz, For The Win, "10 NFL players who are destined for breakout seasons in 2017", 17 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ugly'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ugly

Middle English, from Old Norse uggligr, from uggr fear; akin to Old Norse ugga to fear

NEW!

First Known Use: 13th century

See Words from the same year

ugly

adverb ug·ly

Definition of ugly

: in an ugly manner was acting ugly

First Known Use of ugly

14th century

UGLY Defined for English Language Learners

ugly

play

adjective

Definition of ugly for English Language Learners

: unpleasant to look at : not pretty or attractive
: unpleasant to hear
: offensive or disgusting

UGLY Defined for Kids

ugly

play

adjective ug·ly \ˈə-glē\

Definition of ugly for Students

uglier

;

ugliest

1 : unpleasant to look at : not attractive He was an ugly dog, but already, I loved him with all my heart. — Kate DiCamillo, Because of Winn-Dixie
2 : ¹offensive 1 ugly habits
3 : likely to cause bother or discomfort : troublesome an ugly situation
4 : showing a mean or quarrelsome disposition an ugly temper