as in dreadfulness
the quality of inspiring intense dread or dismay
the awfulness of the car accident can scarcely be described
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of awfulness
The real-life 2005 story involving a Canadian couple who inspired this film is horrifying, and the movie does a great job of capturing the awfulness of being mauled by a bear.
—
Vanessa Maki, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2025
Up-market producer David Susskind railed for four hours about the awfulness of the boob tube.
—Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025
The awfulness of it scrapes my veins, turning everything orange and raw.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Brent had flown to Rio in December to escape the awfulness of his life in New York.
—David Velasco, Harpers Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Vanessa Maki, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2025
Up-market producer David Susskind railed for four hours about the awfulness of the boob tube.
—Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025
The awfulness of it scrapes my veins, turning everything orange and raw.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Brent had flown to Rio in December to escape the awfulness of his life in New York.
—David Velasco, Harpers Magazine, 18 Dec. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for awfulness
Noun
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Leone's horror anthology features a wraparound story about a babysitter, Sarah (Katie Maguire), and her two adolescent charges, Timmy and Tia, who find an unmarked VHS in their trick-or-treat bag.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
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From Jason Voorhees terrorizing all visitors of Camp Crystal Lake to Michael Myers persistently haunting the inhabitants of Haddonfield, Illinois, horror movies have relied on the silence and mystique of their main antagonists for decades.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Satellite images analyzed by the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale School of Public Health and verified by CNN show clear evidence of the atrocities in El Fasher.—
Ivana Kottasová,
CNN Money,
30 Oct. 2025
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Whether the atrocities of the RSF and SAF are comparable is an open question.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Awfulness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/awfulness. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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