1
as in horrific
extremely disturbing or repellent
an atrocious crime that shocked even hardened members of the police force
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terrible
extremely unsatisfactory
the picture quality on the pirated DVD was atrocious
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
the atrocious treatment of prisoners at the camps
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of atrocious
Their offense has been good enough at times, but their defense is just atrocious.
—
Zach Harper, New York Times, 9 Mar. 2026
The first period had echoes of last year’s dominant showings at home, with the Kings turning in a sharp performance and the Habs playing an atrocious 20 minutes.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 8 Mar. 2026
So, yes, the offense was atrocious at Tuesday’s close, with Herro enduring a second consecutive shooting struggle, now 10 for 32 in his last two.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2026
Alesia overfilled the pans, which means the muffins look atrocious.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for atrocious
Zach Harper, New York Times, 9 Mar. 2026
The first period had echoes of last year’s dominant showings at home, with the Kings turning in a sharp performance and the Habs playing an atrocious 20 minutes.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 8 Mar. 2026
So, yes, the offense was atrocious at Tuesday’s close, with Herro enduring a second consecutive shooting struggle, now 10 for 32 in his last two.
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 25 Feb. 2026
Alesia overfilled the pans, which means the muffins look atrocious.
—Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for atrocious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atrocious
Adjective
-
The charges revealed key details and were among the first concrete public moves made in a grisly and horrific case that had been under a largely secret investigation in the seven months since the body of Celeste Rivas Hernandez was found.—
Andrew Dalton,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2026
-
On Thursday, another horrific crime rattled the city —15-year-old Jaden Pierre was beaten and fatally shot at point-blank range in a Queens playground.—
Rebecca White,
New York Daily News,
19 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
If anything, great public pressure being brought to bear is a terrible reason to dispense with due-process protections designed to protect the legal rights of individuals, and crafting one exception would seem to create a precedent for crafting others.—
Jon Allsop,
New Yorker,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Some members of Congress, along with airline CEOs and analysts, say the bailout would be a terrible idea.—
Donald Judd,
CNN Money,
23 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Seventy percent of tomatoes consumed in the United States come from Mexico, where the weather was also brutal, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).—
Vanessa Yurkevich,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2026
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For Asmae El Moudir in The Mother of All Lies, that meant using miniatures to coax out details of her family’s experiences during Morocco’s brutal Years of Lead.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
What follows is a crescendo of bloody madness, including a gruesome toenail cutting scene that shouldn’t be viewed while eating, a grandma being eaten alive by a pack of coyotes and a truly bonkers wake that erupts into laugh-out-loud violence thanks to a pair of dentures.—
Alex Ritman,
Variety,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Since then, The Pitt has blown up in an unlikely way for any cultural object in the 2020s, much less a gruesome medical drama.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
On that horrible day, Dad was outside his vehicle supervising a ditch cleaning operation when a driver ignored traffic control devices, drove through a closed lane, and struck him, pinning him between two vehicles.—
Allysson Bornt,
New York Daily News,
19 Apr. 2026
-
And every family has that annoying uncle that makes horrible jokes or one situation after another.—
Lexi Lane,
PEOPLE,
18 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Dahl’s books are fanciful and imaginative, but also dark, cynical, and mean (and, unfortunately, often reflected his real-life ugliness), spinning stories in which gruesome and unpleasant fates befell rotten kids, and adults were frequently selfish, cruel, and not to be trusted.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
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Violating that trust is both cruel and unlawful.—
DeJanay Booth-Singleton,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Zendaya and Robert Pattinson star in Kristoffer Borgli’s rug-pull rom-com, which follows a soon-to-be-married couple whose relationship implodes after a shocking revelation.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2026
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The series abruptly concluded with Lois' shocking pregnancy news and Malcolm just starting his freshman year at Harvard.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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But in the same vein as the Jets, that guy doesn't exist at the top of the board and the Cardinals also desperately need to improve on their awful pass rush (tied for third-fewest sacks in the NFL).—
Dan Zaksheske,
FOXNews.com,
21 Apr. 2026
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Bullying is this awful ostracization of people who don’t deserve it.—
Mac Engel
April 20,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Atrocious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atrocious. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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