as in unpleasant
not giving pleasure to the mind or senses
the novel has an icky sentimentality that makes my skin crawl
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Recent Examples of icky
Her pipes are backed up with icky brown water.
—
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 13 Nov. 2025
But apart from Berger ending things with Carrie via Post-it, there’s nothing more icky than a boyfriend plagued by jealousy over his partner’s success.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 10 Nov. 2025
The five blades are cloaked in aloe soap for a close, soothing shave, and the handle comes with a magnetic mount that fends off icky rust and sticks to the shower wall for easy access.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 9 Oct. 2025
The eye midge may have implanted itself elsewhere and there’s no telling where those other icky creatures from Prodigy’s labs have scurried off to, but those are questions that will no doubt be answered once/if FX announces a second season.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for icky
Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 13 Nov. 2025
But apart from Berger ending things with Carrie via Post-it, there’s nothing more icky than a boyfriend plagued by jealousy over his partner’s success.
—Daniel Rodgers, Vogue, 10 Nov. 2025
The five blades are cloaked in aloe soap for a close, soothing shave, and the handle comes with a magnetic mount that fends off icky rust and sticks to the shower wall for easy access.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 9 Oct. 2025
The eye midge may have implanted itself elsewhere and there’s no telling where those other icky creatures from Prodigy’s labs have scurried off to, but those are questions that will no doubt be answered once/if FX announces a second season.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for icky
Recent Examples of Synonyms for icky
Adjective
-
Using a speaker outside the stall results in reverb and echoing as the music bounces around the bathroom walls, making the sound muddy and unpleasant.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Given the lack of gravity, even a runny nose can turn into an extremely unpleasant experience, forcing astronauts to resort to unusual measures just to drain mucus from their nasal passages.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Before Getting Started When cleaning your oven, try to avoid using harsh oven cleaners or using the self-cleaning feature.—
Daley Quinn,
Southern Living,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The origin of clemency is understood through the Federalist Papers as a need for mercy in instances when the criminal justice system was too harsh.—
Kinsey Crowley,
USA Today,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Smears on non-sensor areas of the tiara are like bug debris on your hood, aesthetically unpleasing but not harmful.—
Eric Tegler,
Popular Mechanics,
1 Oct. 2019
-
His side's inability to finish off the game against Burnley on the other hand was very unpleasing.—
SI.com,
SI.com,
1 Feb. 2018
Adjective
-
Now, but as the statistics and figures come in here in Minneapolis, there's double-digit drops in crime, coupled with a lot of bad people and bad things being taken off of your streets.—
Esme Murphy,
CBS News,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Under President Biden, the FTC and DOJ slowed large transactions, suggesting that all big businesses were bad businesses.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Time,
13 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Microsoft took months to fix Remote Desktop disconnection issues, then shipped a Windows Update that wiped out Copilot, and released updates that duplicated the Task Manager and created a nasty system recovery bug.—
Tom Warren,
The Verge,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Those might have increased here because of weak data, like the nasty drop in consumer confidence yesterday, or because of the expectation a new Fed chair will be more dovish.—
Kelly Evans,
CNBC,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Featuring the good, the bad and the ugly, ‘Look of the Week’ is a regular series dedicated to unpacking the most talked about outfit of the last seven days.—
Leah Dolan,
CNN Money,
29 Jan. 2026
-
There are also two stepsisters, neither ugly but one quite bratty.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Don’t worry — the accompanying sidecar of jim jeow dipping sauce brings the sour and spice for which Northern Thai cuisine is famous.—
Matthew Odam,
Austin American Statesman,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Nothing a shot of mezcal with the pucker of sour apple can’t blot out.—
Bill Addison,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Are there horrible smells wafting around?—
Clio Chang,
Curbed,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Jimmy Kimmel was horrible, and some of these people.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
6 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Icky.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/icky. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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