1
as in lame
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
why, you lousy cheater!
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in poor
falling short of a standard
I actually play a pretty lousy game of tennis
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3
as in terrible
extremely unsatisfactory
the restaurant served a lousy meal that we shouldn't have had to pay for
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4
as in cheap
of low quality
a tacky store selling lousy souvenirs
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5
as in crowded
possessing or covered with great numbers or amounts of something specified
a Manhattan neighborhood that is lousy with wannabe actors
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lousy
Is this just the usual lurch into the All-Star Break, a comical stretch of lousy basketball karma … or something else?
—
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 11 Feb. 2026
The acoustics of the concert hall, in particular, were lousy, though they have been addressed through renovations over the years (and the smaller halls are said to be much better sounding).
—Christopher Robbins, Curbed, 9 Feb. 2026
There’s no shortage of dispiriting news, but Wednesday’s gutting of the Washington Post staff was particularly lousy.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 6 Feb. 2026
Think of Arraez as a lineup lengthener first, then worry about his potential to be a generationally lousy defense later.
—Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for lousy
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 11 Feb. 2026
The acoustics of the concert hall, in particular, were lousy, though they have been addressed through renovations over the years (and the smaller halls are said to be much better sounding).
—Christopher Robbins, Curbed, 9 Feb. 2026
There’s no shortage of dispiriting news, but Wednesday’s gutting of the Washington Post staff was particularly lousy.
—Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 6 Feb. 2026
Think of Arraez as a lineup lengthener first, then worry about his potential to be a generationally lousy defense later.
—Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 1 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for lousy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lousy
Adjective
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Smith said the legislation could pass in December, during the lame-duck session of Congress that will follow November’s midterm elections, but that the coming days are critical.—
Jeff John Roberts,
Fortune,
6 Mar. 2026
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Maybe that’s a lame hook, but that, combined with the return of reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, gets them back in their spot.—
Law Murray,
New York Times,
2 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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City officials say the long-term leases make buying Liberty Station a poor investment for any potential buyer other than Seligman.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
11 Mar. 2026
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Further, according to the paper, when supply tightens, richer nations outbid poorer ones for scarce shipments, exacerbating challenges for vulnerable economies.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
11 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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As compiled by Gnostics, who consider the material world to be a fundamentally terrible place.—
Jay Martel,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
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The Astros’ young second baseman, Jose Altuve, was making waves, Fisher remembered, yet the club still looked terrible.—
Evan Drellich,
New York Times,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Unlike rivals giving subscribers a choice of ad-free plans or cheaper tiers with ads, Amazon defaulted to ads for all subscribers to Prime, allowing an opt-out for an extra premium.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
13 Mar. 2026
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Rivian has been teasing the R2 for a while now, dangling the promise of a smaller, cheaper, more attainable version of its beloved R1S in front of adventure-hungry buyers who couldn’t quite stretch to the $77,000-plus sticker of its halo SUV.—
Kevin Sintumuang,
Outside,
13 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The ancestors of insects left a crowded sea behind by adapting to life on land.—
Andrew Coletti,
Popular Science,
12 Mar. 2026
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In the crowded forest of sports media—where talking heads build tidy little houses of straw narratives and stick-thin hot takes—there prowls a figure with a grin sharp enough to make the room uneasy.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Granted, those three performances were pitiful.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Mar. 2026
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Gallup reached only 50,000 people, a pitiful fraction of The Literary Digest’s awe-inspiring mailbag.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
21 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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There have also been reports that some migrants are being held at the processing center longer than ICE policy allows, something Veasey called unacceptable.—
Marissa Armas,
CBS News,
10 Mar. 2026
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Government actions have an important symbolic value and show that authorities deem violence against women unacceptable, said Isadora Vianna, a sociology researcher from Rio de Janeiro State University.—
Eléonore Hughes,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Arsenal, like Chelsea and City, have that horrible Wednesday-Saturday-Tuesday schedule to contend with.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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At this point, however, this news is neither insignificant nor horrible.—
Kevin Acee,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Lousy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lousy. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
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