ugly

adjective

ug·ly | \ ˈə-glē

uglier; ugliest

Definition of ugly

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : offensive to the sight : hideous

b : offensive or unpleasant to any sense

2 : morally offensive or objectionable corruption—the ugliest stain of all

3a : likely to cause inconvenience or discomfort the ugly truth

b : surly, quarrelsome an ugly disposition

4 : frightful, dire

ugly

adverb

Definition of ugly (Entry 2 of 2)

: in an ugly manner was acting ugly

Other Words from ugly Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about ugly

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Examples of ugly in a Sentence

Adjective

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

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

The ugly The always-online experience, supposedly Fallout 76’s biggest feature, doesn’t add much value to the franchise. — Sarah Leboeuf, Ars Technica, "Two weeks in, Fallout 76 is a lonely, glitchy, flawed mess," 28 Nov. 2018 Anti-Catholic bigotry engulfed the 1928 campaign, one of the ugliest in history. — Edward Kosner, WSJ, "‘Frank and Al’ Review: A Friendship Forged in Albany," 25 Sep. 2018 Trump’s immigration policy remains as ugly as ever, despite his latest efforts to prove otherwise. — Sarah Jones, The New Republic, "The Trumps Don’t Care," 22 June 2018 For as ugly as things might have looked on Tuesday night, first-base coach Dave McKay believes the bases were there for the getting. — Nick Piecoro, azcentral, "Baserunning missteps cost Diamondbacks in latest loss," 22 May 2018 Here, five things the English comedy gets right about the good, the bad, and the ugly. — Daisy Melamed Sanders, Seventeen, "Everything Netflix’s New Show “Sex Education” Gets Right About Awkward Hookups," 18 Jan. 2019 Under this lunation, you’ll be exposed to the good, the bad, and the ugly. — Aliza Kelly Faragher, Allure, "What November's Taurus Horoscope Means for You," 28 Oct. 2018 There is nothing fancy, expensive, or luxurious about a pair of ugly woolen hygge socks—and that is a vital feature of hygge. — Anne Roderique-jones, SELF, "I Practiced Hygge and It's Kind of the Best Thing Ever," 25 Dec. 2018 Baxter believes workers will want to unionize — and probably should, as going public will force Uber and Lyft to face the ugly accusations of worker mistreatment within the gig economy. — Chavie Lieber, Vox, "Uber and Lyft are racing each other to go public. Here’s why.," 12 Dec. 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Adverb

While countering Pawlenty was a unifying theme for the Democrats, their primary turned ugly in the closing days. — Kyle Potter, The Seattle Times, "Minnesota GOP governor primary tests Pawlenty’s comeback bid," 13 Aug. 2018 And lets not forget that @stefanogabbana bullies young girls online calling them ugly. — Colleen Kratofil, PEOPLE.com, "Ashley Graham, Naomi Campbell Criticized for Walking Dolce & Gabbana Show After Selena Gomez Diss," 9 July 2018 And people were saying ugly and often untruthful things. — Hope Reese, Vox, "A historian on our broken election system: “it’s run by people with stake in the outcome”," 21 Nov. 2018 Of course, a choppy, fun-to-trade market could easily turn ugly if the economy suddenly slows or a trade war erupts with China, to name just two risks. — Landon Thomas Jr., New York Times, "Stock Markets Are Scary. Suddenly, It’s a Good Time to be a Trader.," 8 Mar. 2018 Connie Britton is playing Debra Newell, the successful interior designer who met John Meehan on the Internet and began a relationship with him that turned ugly. — Christopher Rosa, Glamour, "Everything We Know About Bravo's TV Adaptation of Dirty John," 15 Oct. 2018 But their eventual challengers must first survive GOP primaries, which have been particularly ugly. — Nicole Gaudiano, USA TODAY, "Primary voters to cast ballots Tuesday in West Virginia, Indiana, Ohio and North Carolina," 7 May 2018 The problem for the Democratic Party is that its left wing’s frenzies can turn ugly. — Daniel Henninger, WSJ, "Teeing Off on Trump," 27 June 2018 And while the first two swings did look ugly, Porcello isn’t an awful hitter for an American League pitcher. — Andrew Joseph, For The Win, "ESPN crew mocks Rick Porcello's hitting right before he rips a 3-run double," 2 July 2018

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.