atrocious

adjective

ə-ˈtrō-shəs How to pronounce atrocious (audio)
Definition of atrociousnext
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of atrocious The alleged conduct of this defendant was way beyond atrocious and horrendous. — Karma Sabbah, CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026 The Leeds forward line was helped by Newcastle’s atrocious defending and another weak clearance led to a fourth goal after 59 minutes, Noah Okafor slapping his low strike through a sea of legs into the far corner. — ABC News, 14 Sep. 2026 Stewart, Why are Fox, CBS, & NBC allowing the Big Ten to have an atrocious week of scheduling? — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2026 The heat was punishing, the aesthetic was strictly corporate and the soccer itself was deeply atrocious. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 13 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for atrocious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atrocious
  1. horrific
  2. terrible
  3. brutal
  4. gruesome
  5. horrible
  6. cruel
  7. shocking
  8. awful
Adjective
  • The battle is between that horrible atmosphere and some of the horrific candidates that have been nominated by the Democratic Party.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026
  • The plot is carried out to horrific proportions, but the subjects are so utterly moronic that the gag stops being amusing.
    — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of horrific
Adjective
  • The bat lay on its back, soggy and wretched, here in the waning hours of this terrible day.
    — Téa Obreht, New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2026
  • An ugly fight between teammates during training camp was a terrible start to a season that officially began with a loss against North Carolina, a game in Dublin that TCU essentially sold, against the desires of Dykes.
    — Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of terrible
Adjective
  • In Samo’s warped reality, omnipresent hornets gain an evil power, forcing him to confront his mother in what could turn into a brutal showdown.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 30 Oct. 2026
  • At this point, both teams are just playing for bowl eligibility, with brutal November schedules awaiting each team.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of brutal
Adjective
  • Thunder star Jalen Williams, the team’s second-leading scorer and best all-around defender during its title run two seasons ago, fractured a fibula and dislocated his left ankle in a gruesome injury Sunday.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Rescue workers continue to search in the wreckage for survivors and bodies, with witnesses describing a gruesome scene.
    — Anders Hagstrom, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of gruesome
Adjective
  • Their monthlong travel by ship was under horrible conditions.
    — Lois K. Solomon, Sun Sentinel, 2 Nov. 2026
  • While the fire was horrible, Hong said some blessings have emerged from the tragedy.
    — Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 1 Nov. 2026
Definition of horrible
Adjective
  • People talking to an AI in an abusive and cruel way are more likely to be associated with trying to get the AI model to engage in dangerous requests, like trying to get around an AI’s safety guardrails, Campbell added.
    — Hadas Gold, CNN Money, 1 Nov. 2026
  • From the very start, the students assigned as guards went on cruel power trips and repeatedly humiliated — if not psychologically tortured — the inmates, to the point that some of the prisoners suffered nervous breakdowns.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • In 2017, McDowell suffered another shocking loss when Paxton died following heart surgery.
    — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2026
  • The project follows Anna, who races to conceal the shocking truth about her best friend’s death on the night of her 21st birthday.
    — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of shocking
Adjective
  • In Obsession’s most horrifying sequence, the audience senses something awful is about to unfold several beats before the frenzy of blunt-force head trauma actually takes place on screen.
    — Chris Lee, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2026
  • As Philip awaits trial at home, Lucy processes the shock, too smart to believe this is all some awful misunderstanding.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of awful

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atrocious
atrociously
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Cite this Entry

“Atrocious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atrocious. Accessed 4 Nov. 2026.

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