as in gruesome
extremely disturbing or repellent
a photographic exhibit of nightmarish images from the wars of the 20th century
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Recent Examples of nightmarish
The longer and more interesting answer is that, although there is no direct evidence that Odysseus existed, fought a war, and then suffered a nightmarish journey home to Ithaca, his story contains elements of historical memory and geographical accuracy.
—
Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
When Lydia wakes from her own nightmarish sleep, Vivian’s seat is empty.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2026
The Phillies on Tuesday fired manager Rob Thomson, the owner of the highest managerial winning percentage in franchise history who guided them to four postseason appearances in four years, but now bears the brunt of a nightmarish beginning to the 2026 season.
—Matt Gelb, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2026
This season has gotten off to a nightmarish start, and through the first month of the season the Red Sox offense has been among the worst in MLB.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 26 Apr. 2026
There was nothing quaint about the making of Apocalypse Now, for which Tavoularis created a nightmarish jungle kingdom with a decaying temple — inspired by the ancient Angkor Wat in Cambodia — as its centerpiece.
—Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 23 Apr. 2026
Other residents who lived in the only building in the complex that escaped the fire face the trauma of living with nightmarish memories.
—Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Other residents who lived in the only building in the complex that escaped the fire face the trauma of living with nightmarish memories.
—ABC News, 19 Apr. 2026
Past employees have said that working under Levin is nightmarish; one former colleague of Levin’s filed a gender discrimination complaint against the organization in 2020.
—Paula Mejía, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
When Lydia wakes from her own nightmarish sleep, Vivian’s seat is empty.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 29 Apr. 2026
The Phillies on Tuesday fired manager Rob Thomson, the owner of the highest managerial winning percentage in franchise history who guided them to four postseason appearances in four years, but now bears the brunt of a nightmarish beginning to the 2026 season.
—Matt Gelb, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2026
This season has gotten off to a nightmarish start, and through the first month of the season the Red Sox offense has been among the worst in MLB.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 26 Apr. 2026
There was nothing quaint about the making of Apocalypse Now, for which Tavoularis created a nightmarish jungle kingdom with a decaying temple — inspired by the ancient Angkor Wat in Cambodia — as its centerpiece.
—Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 23 Apr. 2026
Other residents who lived in the only building in the complex that escaped the fire face the trauma of living with nightmarish memories.
—Kanis Leung, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2026
Other residents who lived in the only building in the complex that escaped the fire face the trauma of living with nightmarish memories.
—ABC News, 19 Apr. 2026
Past employees have said that working under Levin is nightmarish; one former colleague of Levin’s filed a gender discrimination complaint against the organization in 2020.
—Paula Mejía, New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nightmarish
Adjective
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The gruesome case forced the Asahiyama Zoo, closed since early last month as part of regular maintenance ahead of the summer season, to delay its reopening scheduled for Wednesday.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
-
Bathen says the gruesome details aren't a bother to some.—
Gillian Telling,
PEOPLE,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Critically, Michael doesn’t recoil when Jackie shares her horrific story.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
1 May 2026
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And Russia has struggled to replenish its military ranks amid horrific casualties on the Ukrainian front line.—
Nathan Hodge,
CNN Money,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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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
-
This is the nightmare scenario for California Democrats.—
Tom Charron,
Mercury News,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Something shocking happens on Jeon-Gi’s last day at the camp.—
Cressida Leyshon,
New Yorker,
3 May 2026
-
Incredibly shocking moment in the run-up to the race as Great White is scratched.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
2 May 2026
Adjective
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Italy has not been of any help to us and Spain has been horrible.—
Rebecca Schneid,
Time,
3 May 2026
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Aston Villa 1-1 Tottenham Chelsea vs Nottingham Forest Again, this is horrible scheduling on a Bank Holiday Monday afternoon, three days before Forest go to Villa for the second leg of that Europa League semi-final.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
1 May 2026
Adjective
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The delay seemed to Silva like one more indignity in a terrible series of events that began with her husband’s death in 2024.—
Ariane Lange,
Sacbee.com,
30 Apr. 2026
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The logic here is peak modern NBA, and the league wants to make being slightly below average more rewarding than being truly terrible.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Late on against Newcastle, Rutter beat two players on the left with a frightening burst of pace and set up Minteh, only for the 21-year-old to blast over an empty net.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
4 May 2026
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Dash camera video showed the frightening moment when a wheel from a United Airlines plane slammed into a bakery delivery truck that was traveling on the New Jersey Turnpike.—
Clara McMichael,
ABC News,
4 May 2026
Adjective
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Associated Risks of Carpet Beetles Though that information may sound, well, moderately horrifying, carpet beetles pose no potential harm to you personally.—
Rae Ford,
Martha Stewart,
1 May 2026
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Unicellular terror The amoeba the doctors found was Acanthamoeba, which is known to cause such horrifying infections.—
Beth Mole,
ArsTechnica,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nightmarish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nightmarish. Accessed 6 May. 2026.
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