direful

adjective

ˈdī(-ə)r-fəl How to pronounce direful (audio)
Definition of direfulnext
1
as in ominous
being or showing a sign of evil or calamity to come the stock market crash was the first direful indication of the dark days to come

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terrifying
causing fear heard the direful howling of the wolves during the night

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for direful
  1. ominous
  2. terrifying
  3. sinister
  4. formidable
  5. menacing
  6. horrible
  7. terrible
  8. frightening
Adjective
  • There’s a blank panel next to the 14 crashes, an ominous open space ripe for fresh carnage.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 24 Sep. 2026
  • That’s an ominous sign for a Bucs team that faces the Vikings and Packers at home, then travels to Dallas for a Thursday night game against the Cowboys in a span of 12 days.
    — Rick Stroud, The Orlando Sentinel, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of ominous
Adjective
  • Even so, returning to college was terrifying after ongoing health crises led to academic failure.
    — Alexis Lariviere, Washington Post, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The lycanthropy saga, set in an English village in the 13th century, stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson as a man who undergoes terrifying transformations into a werewolf each full moon.
    — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of terrifying
Adjective
  • Things are just a little less sinister in the song’s lyrics than in the way things play out on screen.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 28 Sep. 2026
  • As the first three episodes unfold, the number keeps appearing in increasingly sinister ways — ultimately helping connect the season’s seemingly disparate characters and storylines.
    — Lexi Carson, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of sinister
Adjective
  • DeFoe has very limited experience fishing at Lake Hamilton, but his partner Gill is one of the most formidable specialists with forward-facing sonar.
    — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Both EVs share a formidable powertrain specced for serious performance, and feature futuristic styling that wouldn't be out of place in a cyberpunk future.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of formidable
Adjective
  • Similarly, the interplay enacted in the exhibition between Jafa’s and Prince’s work forces us as visitors to actively participate in a practice of juxtapositional thinking ourselves, producing a momentum that is at once menacing and enlivening.
    — Tina M. Campt, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Harassed all day by Minnesota's menacing pass rush, Baker Mayfield fled the pocket again — this time scrambling and weaving more 20 yards backward before launching a desperation heave that was intercepted.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of menacing
Adjective
  • At its worst, cognitive impairment can be a horrible, life-altering disease for patient and loved ones.
    — Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
  • Doubs had a horrible debut in the league’s season opener last week against the Seattle Seahawks.
    — Daniel Popper, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of horrible
Adjective
  • In any case, the nation’s approach toward Europe was not to meddle in its internal affairs but, rather, to avoid another terrible Continental war.
    — Beverly Gage, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Offensive lineman Steve Avila was a member of the 2024 Rams team that turned it around after a terrible start.
    — Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of terrible
Adjective
  • Compulsory worship with frightening dogma, which could lead you equally plausibly to heaven or hell.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Alex Bregman went 4 for 4 with two home runs and four RBIs in his second game back from a frightening injury, and the Chicago Cubs beat the Boston Red Sox 6-2 on Sunday in a regular-season finale that was relocated to Tropicana Field.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of frightening
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.

Browse Nearby Words

direct taxes
direful
dirge
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Direful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/direful. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tittle

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All