nightmare 1 of 2

noun

ˈnīt-ˌmer How to pronounce nightmare (audio)
Definition of nightmarenext
as in agony
a situation or state that causes great suffering and unhappiness that 20-page exam was a nightmare

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

nightmare

2 of 2

adjective

as in horrific
extremely disturbing or repellent survivors of a nuclear holocaust would surely face a nightmare existence

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 nightmare
Noun
Continue reading … VIRUS RECKONING — COVID fury explodes as Fauci hearing revives 'insane' lockdown nightmare tales. — FOXNews.com, 31 July 2026 And building a product that can actually fly is an engineering nightmare. — Ronnen Harary, Fortune, 31 July 2026
Adjective
This is the nightmare scenario behind the Kessler syndrome, a cascading chain of collisions that could render entire orbital pathways unusable. — Alan Bradley, Space.com, 2 Aug. 2026 But the 22-year-old is not alone in having a nightmare individual performance on a high-profile sporting stage. — Eduardo Tansley, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for nightmare
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nightmare
  1. agony
  2. horrific
  3. misery
  4. gruesome
  5. horror
  6. shocking
  7. torture
  8. horrible
Noun
  • The man with almost no injury was writhing in agony, while the man with a four-inch nail lodged near his brain kept working for six days, not even realizing the nail was there.
    — Kevin Kruse, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Instead of wailing in agony after sampling the vengefully spiked bird, Prince fell in love with it and founded the BBQ Chicken Shack in 1945.
    — Ellen Fort, Bon Appetit Magazine, 31 July 2026
Definition of agony
Adjective
  • Civilian death and destruction, however horrific, do not establish genocide.
    — Arielle Kaden, New York Daily News, 3 Aug. 2026
  • His team added that Emmanuel Haro's sister was subjected to horrific abuse and watched her brother die as a result of their parents' neglect.
    — Matthew Rodriguez, CBS News, 31 July 2026
Definition of horrific
Noun
  • The player whose arrival in 2022 signaled the end of a five-year run of misery.
    — Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
  • For so long, many have believed that God is Spirit, yet, somehow, expelled us out of His presence into the vulnerability and misery of matter.
    — Mark Swinney, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2026
Definition of misery
Adjective
  • Burke was not merely a rising star grappling with new fame, prosecutors contend, but a killer carrying a gruesome secret.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 5 Aug. 2026
  • The massacre left the community reeling from the losses and the gruesome nature of the victims’ deaths.
    — Samira Asma-Sadeque, PEOPLE, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of gruesome
Noun
  • Her film credits include Legion (2010), the remake of Straw Dogs (2011), and the supernatural horror movie The Mortuary Assistant (2026).
    — Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Aug. 2026
  • In 21 months of these meetings, not one investor has expressed interest in funding a dark, violent horror or thriller.
    — Daren Smith, IndieWire, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of horror
Adjective
  • The shocking lack of answers does not appear to be for a lack of resources, rather it highlights perceived investigative missteps along the way.
    — Tony Maglio, HollywoodReporter, 8 Aug. 2026
  • The shocking report was nevertheless cheered by investors, who took the weakness in the labor market as a sign that the Federal Reserve won’t hike rates in September.
    — Sarah Min, CNBC, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of shocking
Noun
  • But even those people who dislike the very existence of private schools in big cities would be hard-pressed to make the case that the entire sector collectively makes up a torture chamber.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Her work has included uncovering human trafficking networks, revealing an ISIS underground torture prison in Syria, documenting the war in Ukraine and interviewing senior political figures and world leaders.
    — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2026
Definition of torture
Adjective
  • But the Chinese way will cause a proliferation of talent, usage, data—until something horrible happens.
    — Evan Osnos, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • 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
Definition of horrible

Browse Nearby Words

nightly
nightmare
nightmares
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Cite this Entry

“Nightmare.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nightmare. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on nightmare

Nglish: Translation of nightmare for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about nightmare

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