hellish

adjective

Definition of hellishnext
as in horrible
of, resembling, or befitting hell We've been having hellish weather lately. The battlefield was a hellish scene of death and destruction.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 hellish There’s a vampire and wellness cult, a hellish basement and a bloodthirsty talking cat. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 June 2026 In full widescreen dark hellish color palettes we are taken to the Celtic fringe of 1247 AD, where Sarnoski proceeds to destroy any previous cinematic incarnation of the legendary Robin Hood and smash it to bits. — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 11 June 2026 Without it, the film would be even more hellish. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 20 May 2026 But that doesn’t make watching Her Private Hell any less hellish. — Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 19 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for hellish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hellish
  1. horrible
  2. awful
  3. dreadful
  4. hideous
  5. sickening
  6. shocking
Adjective
  • But the Chinese way will cause a proliferation of talent, usage, data—until something horrible happens.
    — Evan Osnos, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • The Badgers have had horrible injury luck, which has led to bad QB play the past few years.
    — Antonio Morales, New York Times, 27 July 2026
Definition of horrible
Adjective
  • So kudos to the extras who steal scenes from them in the background, flailing like avant-garde dancers when a vicious mental parasite leaps from grandmothers to joggers to security guards on a quest to find something awful.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 30 July 2026
  • The experts and the betting odds expect futility on the field, something close to awful.
    — Greg Cote July 27, Miami Herald, 27 July 2026
Definition of awful
Adjective
  • But his teams didn’t appear ready to play while getting off to dreadful starts in each of the past three seasons.
    — Dan Duggan, New York Times, 28 July 2026
  • The implications were simply so dreadful that the officials just gave up.
    — Gideon Lewis-Kraus, New Yorker, 25 July 2026
Definition of dreadful
Adjective
  • Illiteracy, and its centuries-long ongoing epidemic, is hideous.
    — Liza Lentini, SPIN, 21 July 2026
  • The ace endured a rocky start punctuated by a hideous 11-run blowup in Minnesota and has now been sidelined with a shoulder injury since April 26.
    — Mac Cerullo, Hartford Courant, 28 June 2026
Definition of hideous
Adjective
  • To defile the legacy of his family and that family name is sickening, and turns my stomach.
    — Leigh Blickley, Entertainment Weekly, 16 July 2026
  • The 2022 spill was the largest ever from the Keystone pipeline, killing or sickening 2,700 animals.
    — Ella Nilsen, CNN Money, 10 July 2026
Definition of sickening
Adjective
  • Randy Orton made a shocking return to WWE SummerSlam 2026, hitting an RKO on Cody Rhodes before CM Punk was able to capitalize with a fifth GTS.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
  • This may have seemed shocking to those who associated alien life primarily with science fiction invasion scenarios like The War of the Worlds.
    — Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 30 July 2026
Definition of shocking

Browse Nearby Words

hellions
hellish
hellishness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hellish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hellish. Accessed 4 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on hellish

Nglish: Translation of hellish for Spanish Speakers

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 élan

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

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

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

How long is a jiffy?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
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
asap street sign
Figure Out These Acronyms ASAP You don't have to be a NASA engineer to get these...
See All