hideous

adjective

ˈhi-dē-əs How to pronounce hideous (audio)
Definition of hideousnext
1
as in ugly
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment the hideous way in which she treated her maid after she discovered her ring was missing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in gruesome
extremely disturbing or repellent a hideous crime that could not be fully described in the newspapers

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in grotesque
unpleasant to look at wearing a hideous Halloween mask that made the kids all jump with fright

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 hideous Supposedly the poem was inspired by a peyote-vision where the edifice of San Francisco’s Sir Francis Drake Hotel was transformed into a hideous, twisted, demonic visage, which inspired the beating heart of Howl’s second section. — Literary Hub, 3 June 2026 This used to be a death knell—the shoes that fit the bill were hideous until a few years ago. — Tamim Alnuweiri, InStyle, 31 May 2026 After hideous 6-1 loss in Game 4, the theme for the team was to play more connected. — Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 29 Apr. 2026 Such is a snarky line that Emily Blunt delivers as Emily Charlton in The Devil Wears Prada, a character who would rather faint than wear something hideous. — Christian Allaire, Vogue, 21 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for hideous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hideous
  1. ugly
  2. gruesome
  3. grotesque
  4. disgusting
  5. horrific
  6. unpleasing
  7. horrible
  8. shocking
Adjective
  • It was delivered with sneers, an ugly, small-minded few minutes in support of the sclerotic, disdainful of dynamic change.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2026
  • And after an ugly Congress filled with multiple shutdowns, the House is taking an increasingly confrontational approach toward the Senate.
    — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of ugly
Adjective
  • During the five-day preliminary hearing, prosecutors displayed gruesome crime scene images of Hernandez’s remains and produced hundreds of text messages between Burke and Hernandez that provided an in-depth look at their relationship.
    — Richard Winton, Los Angeles Times, 29 July 2026
  • The previous day, multiple gruesome photos of the crime scene were exhibited on screen.
    — Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 28 July 2026
Definition of gruesome
Adjective
  • After all, these rich, beautiful people couldn’t possibly see past Dee’s uncontrollable urge to panic-gag and Charlie’s uncontrollable desire to shove grotesque amounts of cheese in his mouth, right?
    — Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026
  • Devil facial tumor disease appeared in 1996 in Tasmania’s northeast, grotesque growths on the face and mouth that the animals spread by biting one another in their squabbles over food and mates.
    — John Drake, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
Definition of grotesque
Adjective
  • The left's most hated author — JK Rowling — has dropped the hammer on the disgusting things that took place at the Indiana Fever-Seattle Storm game earlier this week.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2026
  • Or when some man behaving like a degenerate gambler plods into Chelsea Gray’s DMs with a disgusting slur.
    — Candace Buckner, New York Times, 27 July 2026
Definition of disgusting
Adjective
  • Her family members could be seen getting emotional as the detective described the horrific scene.
    — Alex Stone, ABC News, 21 July 2026
  • The end of this horrific tableau draws a distinct difference between Loustat and Loumand.
    — Sabrina Reed, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of horrific
Adjective
  • The identity of the unpleasing Lindsay Marriott’s slayer has no pressing interest.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026
  • The remarks not only referred to the aesthetics of the game – tedious matches devoid of skillful merit that were unpleasing to watch.
    — Cesar R. Torres, The Conversation, 26 May 2026
Definition of unpleasing
Adjective
  • 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
  • Aemond raves about his horrible older brother who spent their youth tormenting him.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
Definition of horrible
Adjective
  • This mixture of raucous comedy and unusually vivid war scenes was considered quite shocking for its time.
    — Tim Page, The Washington Examiner, 25 July 2026
  • The first story was set in the 1980s while the second volume, recently wrapped, was set in the 1990s, at the dawn of the Internet age and culminated with a shocking finale that left readers’ jaws on the forest floor.
    — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 25 July 2026
Definition of shocking

Browse Nearby Words

hideosity
hideous
hideousness
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Cite this Entry

“Hideous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hideous. Accessed 2 Aug. 2026.

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