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.
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Recent Examples of hellish
The news site Deadspin took clips of different anchors intoning the same words and laid them over one another to make a hellish cacophony.
—
Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2026
The blood seeps up the edges of her white skirts — that’s going to be hellish to try to get out.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
Finding the beauty in that hellish croak — something that Josh Groban was able to do in the last Broadway revival — can prove exceptionally difficult.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2026
This season takes a hellish turn, as our caveman protagonist encounters undead and other paranormal enemies.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hellish
Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 26 Feb. 2026
The blood seeps up the edges of her white skirts — that’s going to be hellish to try to get out.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 16 Feb. 2026
Finding the beauty in that hellish croak — something that Josh Groban was able to do in the last Broadway revival — can prove exceptionally difficult.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 3 Feb. 2026
This season takes a hellish turn, as our caveman protagonist encounters undead and other paranormal enemies.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hellish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hellish
Adjective
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Zack James’ shifty drumming hammers out a drum ’n’ bass redux like a panicked heartbeat while Carney Hemler’s bass lurches in slow motion, replicating the gut drop of a horrible realization.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
3 Apr. 2026
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Fendelman captured that horrible silence in the doc, punctuated by Littlejohn’s niece screaming, feral and raw.—
Brenna Ehrlich,
Rolling Stone,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The only way to pull out of an awful season-opening stretch is one at-bat, one pitch, one win at a time.—
Jen McCaffrey,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
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Still, outside of two games, the offense has been awful.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Brandon Lowe homered twice and fellow Pirates newcomer Ryan O'Hearn also went deep, but Pittsburgh's pitching and defense were dreadful in a disappointing start.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
27 Mar. 2026
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But keep in mind that only Atlanta and Charlotte have fewer games against tanking/dreadful teams than Miami does, which means the Heat might need to win at least five of its seven other games to have a legitimate chance of climbing out of the play-in.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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All our buildings are these hideous rectangles.—
Antonia Hitchens,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
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Unfortunately, their appearance is so hideous to ordinary flesh-and-blood creatures that looking at a Medusan is liable to induce madness and death.—
Richard Edwards,
Space.com,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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In a sickening moment broadcast live after Boyes’s shot missed, Long moved quickly about, shooting many hostages.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
3 Apr. 2026
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The feds also looked over Bied’s sickening business partnership with his co-conspirator in Indonesia, who Bied purchased multiple orangutan and Javan leopard skulls from.—
Tim Dunn,
Boston Herald,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Marin stuck to her plan of staying close until a moment that changed everything with shocking swiftness — her changing her mind and going for the green on the par-5 13th for a go-ahead birdie, and Talley adding to the sad history of collapses on the back nine at the home of the Masters.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
4 Apr. 2026
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Emma’s shocking admission rattles the entire wedding party, particularly Haim’s Rachel, whose cousin was left paralyzed by an act of gun violence.—
Chris Murphy,
Vanity Fair,
3 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hellish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hellish. Accessed 10 Apr. 2026.
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