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
How does the adjective nasty differ from other similar words?
Some common synonyms of nasty are dirty, filthy, foul, and squalid. While all these words mean "conspicuously unclean or impure," nasty applies to what is actually foul or is repugnant to one expecting freshness, cleanliness, or sweetness; in practice, however, nasty is often weakened to the point of being no more than a synonym of unpleasant or disagreeable. When used figuratively, nasty implies a peculiarly offensive unpleasantness.
it's a nasty job to clean up after a sick cat
had a nasty fall
his answer gave her a nasty shock
a stand-up comedian known for nasty humor
When is dirty a more appropriate choice than nasty?
The words dirty and nasty are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, dirty emphasizes the presence of dirt more than an emotional reaction to it or, figuratively, stresses meanness or despicableness.
a dirty littered street
don't ask me to do your dirty work
When could filthy be used to replace nasty?
Although the words filthy and nasty have much in common, filthy carries a strong suggestion of offensiveness and typically of gradually accumulated dirt that begrimes and besmears. Figuratively, it can also describe disgusting obscenity.
a stained greasy floor, utterly filthy
filthy street language
When would foul be a good substitute for nasty?
While in some cases nearly identical to nasty, foul implies extreme offensiveness and an accumulation of what is rotten or stinking; it can also describe, for example, loathsome behavior.
a foul-smelling open sewer
a foul story of lust and greed
When might squalid be a better fit than nasty?
In some situations, the words squalid and nasty are roughly equivalent. However, squalid adds to the idea of dirtiness and filth that of slovenly neglect. Distinctively, its figurative use implies sordidness as well as baseness and dirtiness.
squalid slums
engaged in a series of squalid affairs
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nastyThat would be a former partner and friend Charlie Garrigan (a great, fast-talking and blunt Bill Burr), who turned on him with a nasty op-ed that pissed off Zuckerberg.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
7 Oct. 2026 Dejan Kulusevski The Swede is finally back in full training after two surgeries on a nasty kneecap injury.—
Dan Kilpatrick,
New York Times,
7 Oct. 2026 How judges get their jobs in Colorado In most states, judges face election in some way — sometimes in nasty partisan races.—
Elise Schmelzer,
Denver Post,
7 Oct. 2026 Drama ranged from love triangles to nasty step-parents, tell-all novels to murder — all with the titular Gossip Girl watching and narrating it all.—
Victoria Edel,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for nasty
Walls around the three-sinks are dirty in the ware-washing area.
—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
12 Oct. 2026
Postwar Hiroshima was a popular setting for these movie gangsters, who fought dirty, had no use for the old ceremonies, and wore flashy suits and aviator shades.
My right pants leg was gone and among the smaller cuts an ugly gash puckered at me from the calf.
—
Gerald R. Hunter,
Outdoor Life,
15 Oct. 2026
The first attempts at a foldable smartphone in the 2010s from other companies tended to be fragile and not all that useful, with a big, ugly crease in the center interrupting the experience.
His path crosses with Naoko, a Japanese tourist carrying the weight of a painful past, and Ruby, a young child searching for his parents.
—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
16 Oct. 2026
Rising financial strains on American workers are forcing them to make painful trade-offs, such as skipping medical care, to make ends meet, new research shows.
The disingenuous campaign ads, the obscene amount of money that is spent to air them and the promises that are rarely fulfilled are enough to make one cynical.
—
Cal Thomas,
Arkansas Online,
6 Oct. 2026
The public must contend head-on with a collapsing currency and runaway inflation, and to ordinary Iranians, describing the present situation as sustainable would sound almost obscene.
Moreover, the perpetrators do not appear to have used malicious code on the fridge controllers, potentially complicating efforts to track down who carried out the cyberattack, added Aimé.
—
Sana Noor Haq,
CNN Money,
14 Oct. 2026
The best way to protect yourself from malicious links that install malware and potentially access your private information is to have antivirus software installed on all your devices.
Some orphans, their faces filthy, walked the stands hawking candy.
—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
14 Oct. 2026
Myriad violations, from food that should’ve been trashed weeks earlier to filthy equipment, befouled the state inspection of a West Miami-Dade supermarket this week.
As unpleasant as his job might be at the moment, Harbaugh is ostensibly safe.
—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Oct. 2026
The Kings and Avalanche aren’t really rivals in the way Dallas and Colorado are, but there’s definitely some unpleasant familiarity after a playoff series last year.
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