1
as in gruesome
extremely disturbing or repellent
a ghastly murder that shocked even hard-bitten detectives
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in intense
extreme in degree, power, or effect
I'm afraid that there's been a ghastly misunderstanding
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in terrifying
causing fear
a ghastly crime that made local residents afraid to go out at night
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ghastly
Maye had three turnovers in Super Bowl 60, including a ghastly, unforced interception that snuffed a semi-decent comeback chance.
—
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
And Petitti, presumably with the backing of his schools, favored a ghastly 24-team model that would have fundamentally altered the regular season.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 23 Jan. 2026
Not as some awful sort of ghastly skeleton with a scythe in its hand coming to chop us off.
—Terry Gross, NPR, 15 Jan. 2026
In the nineties, ghastly revelations about the mining conditions in countries such as Sierra Leone, shed harsh light on the back end of the business.
—Emilia Petrarca, New Yorker, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ghastly
Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Feb. 2026
And Petitti, presumably with the backing of his schools, favored a ghastly 24-team model that would have fundamentally altered the regular season.
—Jon Wilner, Mercury News, 23 Jan. 2026
Not as some awful sort of ghastly skeleton with a scythe in its hand coming to chop us off.
—Terry Gross, NPR, 15 Jan. 2026
In the nineties, ghastly revelations about the mining conditions in countries such as Sierra Leone, shed harsh light on the back end of the business.
—Emilia Petrarca, New Yorker, 2 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ghastly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ghastly
Adjective
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The gruesome case forced the Asahiyama Zoo, closed since early last month as part of regular maintenance ahead of the summer season, to delay its reopening scheduled for Wednesday.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
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Bathen says the gruesome details aren't a bother to some.—
Gillian Telling,
PEOPLE,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
By the final showdown, the production has made use of every bit of stage space, with sensational flying sequences (choreographed by Lauren Yalango-Grant and Christopher Cree Grant) that allow the vampires to float, hover, and—in one especially intense moment—dive from that bridge.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2026
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The moment has sparked an outpouring of empathy, with many pointing to the intense pressure drivers face on the job.—
Alexandra Banner,
CNN Money,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
While Krug was alive, authorities filed search warrants with communications companies that sought information about the increasingly terrifying messages the stalker was sending her, police records show.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
1 May 2026
-
When the show picks up, Lorcan is experiencing a strange series of nightmares centered around a terrifying rabbit-faced man, a creature pulled from Celtic mythology known as a Pooka.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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Earlier in the month, the courts heard the horrific and emotional testimonies of camp counselors of that night as part of the lawsuit.—
Mateo Rosiles,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2026
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So even as the Nazi regime was radicalizing through the 1930s and committing horrific violence, the German population was still laughing and being entertained.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The intensive, weeklong building sessions named after former President Jimmy Carter and his late wife Rosalynn have constructed roughly 5,000 homes in 14 countries since 1984.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 May 2026
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The others, though some needed intensive treatments, are stable, the zoo said.—
Cristóbal Reyes,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
Your cab driver is taking you on a horrible route.—
Zach Schiffman,
Curbed,
24 Apr. 2026
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There’s enough cop shows, stories about how horrible the world is, enough plot lines that are similar to each other.—
Annika Pham,
Variety,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Something shocking happens on Jeon-Gi’s last day at the camp.—
Cressida Leyshon,
New Yorker,
3 May 2026
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Incredibly shocking moment in the run-up to the race as Great White is scratched.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
2 May 2026
Adjective
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The delay seemed to Silva like one more indignity in a terrible series of events that began with her husband’s death in 2024.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacbee.com,
30 Apr. 2026
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The logic here is peak modern NBA, and the league wants to make being slightly below average more rewarding than being truly terrible.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ghastly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ghastly. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
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