1
as in dirty
arousing or deserving of one's loathing and disgust
fortunately, the story's nasty characters are balanced by some truly good people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ugly
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
a nasty horror movie that was so violent that I could hardly watch the opening scenes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in painful
causing or feeling bodily pain
a nasty cut on my lip
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in obscene
depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society
nasty magazines that are not sold to minors
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it
nasty comments that trolls left on the website
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in turbulent
marked by wet and windy conditions
bring your raincoat, as the weather's supposed to be nasty
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
7
as in filthy
not clean
it's incredibly nasty inside that garbage bin, so stay away from there
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in unpleasant
not giving pleasure to the mind or senses
the smell of those old leftovers is downright nasty
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
9
as in unsettling
causing worry or anxiety
she had the nasty sense that she'd made a mistake somewhere
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
10
as in foul
not being in accordance with the rules or standards of what is fair in sport
a nasty hit got the hockey player suspended
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
11
as in vile
not following or in accordance with standards of honor and decency
that was a nasty trick to play on people who were so trusting
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
12
as in difficult
requiring exceptional skill or caution in performance or handling
given the high-ranking people involved, it will be a nasty job to hammer out a compromise
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 nasty
While New York should only expect to see a couple inches of rain, cooler temperatures and decent wind, meteorologists predict the nor’easter will bring nastier weather to regions farther north in New England.
—
Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 16 May 2025
Bloodlines includes some of the franchise’s best and nastiest kills.
—Gregory Nussen, Deadline, 13 May 2025
So that nasty stew’s been brewing for a good, long while.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 12 May 2025
There’s a nasty twist with this one, though, with Samsung’s phones particularly vulnerable to the attack.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for nasty
Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News, 16 May 2025
Bloodlines includes some of the franchise’s best and nastiest kills.
—Gregory Nussen, Deadline, 13 May 2025
So that nasty stew’s been brewing for a good, long while.
—Sara Netzley, EW.com, 12 May 2025
There’s a nasty twist with this one, though, with Samsung’s phones particularly vulnerable to the attack.
—Zak Doffman, Forbes.com, 7 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for nasty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nasty
Adjective
-
Airplane tray tables, seatbelt buckles and armrests are known to be among the dirtiest surfaces onboard.—
Isabelle Rodney,
CNN Money,
20 May 2025
-
No filmmaker loves the dirty old town that is New York more than Spike Lee.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
20 May 2025
Adjective
-
The birds' droppings end up on the ground and windows below, creating an ugly scene for staff, branch patrons and passersby walking in the River Market District.—
Joseph Flaherty,
Arkansas Online,
23 May 2025
-
Compare the first half of Season 15 to Jodie Whittaker’s last outing as the Doctor, and things get uglier.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
Their boyfriends, meanwhile, suffer the painful indignities of paper cutters, buzzsaws, and other sharp objects.—
Randall Colburn,
EW.com,
23 May 2025
-
Manu diving can hurt The researchers caution that the manu maneuver is not only difficult but can be risky and painful.—
Elizabeth Weise,
USA Today,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
After the man told the boy to get out of the road, the juvenile responded with cursing and an obscene gesture, the report said.—
Jim Woods,
Chicago Tribune,
15 May 2025
-
Stop into any local bakery and ask for their specialty, many of which contain obscene amounts of egg yolks.—
Jess Fleming,
Twin Cities,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The malicious URLs outputted in the response are in clickable form, meaning all a user has to do is click one to be taken to a malicious site.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
23 May 2025
-
Enhances visibility and control of network traffic and user activities and detects and blocks malicious activities.—
Mickey Singh,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
Adjective
-
This time, there’s still some uneasiness around the organization, mainly rooted in its turbulent recent past.—
James L. Edwards III,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
-
These steps prevent, rather than heal, costly losses that weaken a company’s cash position, especially in turbulent times.—
Dean Kaplan,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Adjective
-
After being fired from SNL, Silverman scored a part playing a misunderstood filthy comedy writer on The Larry Sanders Show, Shandling’s classic send-up of the talk-show game.—
Stephen Rodrick,
Rolling Stone,
18 May 2025
-
Who doesn’t rinse out (and ideally wash) a filthy blender filled with milky stuff?—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Best Smelling Photograph: Kristin Canning Grand Tongo Green Tea + Mint Insect Repellent $15 Amazon After testing nearly 20 different bug sprays (that pretty much all smelled at least a little unpleasant and chemical-y), this picaridin spray from Grand Tongo truly blew me away.—
Kristin Canning,
Wired News,
21 May 2025
-
Today after dropping off groceries, my wife noted that the refrigerator, in her opinion, had an unpleasant odor.—
Eric Thomas,
The Orlando Sentinel,
20 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nasty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nasty. Accessed 29 May. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share