1
as in hideous
unpleasant to look at
her first attempt at painting was pretty ugly—a portrait of her sister that was not at all flattering
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
an ugly suggestion for controlling the overpopulation of deer in the area
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Try This Instead
Try This InsteadFor
Try This
an ugly scar
an ugly scene
an ugly truth
an ugly word
an ugly picture
an unattractive picture
an unlovely picture
an unpleasant picture
an unappealing picture
a hideous picture
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 ugly
Adding to the pressure, Trump last week threatened to withhold his support from any Republican who votes against the legislation, setting the stake for a high-stakes — and potentially ugly — week in the Senate.
—
Mychael Schnell, The Hill, 14 July 2025
With no rain in sight and abundant sunshine, the heat could spell doom toward the end of summer, when droughts rear their ugly heads, Colin said.
—Idaho Statesman, 11 July 2025
And by sharing the ugly parts, she's made golf feel more human.
—Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
In ‘24, Hoover and the offense were a mess through the first six games, which included a rash of turnovers and ugly home defeats to Houston and Central Florida.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for ugly
Mychael Schnell, The Hill, 14 July 2025
With no rain in sight and abundant sunshine, the heat could spell doom toward the end of summer, when droughts rear their ugly heads, Colin said.
—Idaho Statesman, 11 July 2025
And by sharing the ugly parts, she's made golf feel more human.
—Devlina Sarkar, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
In ‘24, Hoover and the offense were a mess through the first six games, which included a rash of turnovers and ugly home defeats to Houston and Central Florida.
—Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for ugly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ugly
Adjective
-
Luthor combats Superman through a combination of science and technology — injecting nanobot GPS trackers into Superman’s bloodstream — using methods that recall the hideous Covid manipulation.—
Armond White,
National Review,
11 July 2025
-
The dark edge in Bushnell’s writing reflects less a brave new world than a world that is the hideous extension of the old one.—
Alice Bolin
June 23,
Literary Hub,
23 June 2025
Adjective
-
That being cold is cool and being hot with a side of humidity is rather disgusting.—
Sherry Kuehl,
Kansas City Star,
16 July 2025
-
There is no way around it: Toilet brushes are disgusting.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
16 July 2025
Adjective
-
But, extreme wealth is a symptom of extreme inequality, and billionaire status is kind of grotesque.—
Megan Cartwright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 July 2025
-
Earlier today, a new post from Elmo was shared expressing his gratitude following the grotesque incident.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
15 July 2025
Adjective
-
That said, The Magician of Tiger Castle did initially start out as a YA romcom about Princess Tullia escaping her betrothal to the neighboring kingdom’s awful prince.—
Natalie Zutter
August 1,
Literary Hub,
1 Aug. 2025
-
The first breach was awful: humiliating for the women who had to see their images passed around, and grim given the number of men making fun of those images with such open, gleeful cruelty.—
Faith Hill,
The Atlantic,
30 July 2025
Adjective
-
Smears on non-sensor areas of the tiara are like bug debris on your hood, aesthetically unpleasing but not harmful.—
Eric Tegler,
Popular Mechanics,
1 Oct. 2019
-
His side's inability to finish off the game against Burnley on the other hand was very unpleasing.—
SI.com,
SI.com,
1 Feb. 2018
Adjective
-
Because of Denise Gough's human frailty as a woman destroyed by her own ambition and Kyle Soller's cowardice in the face of a horrible truth.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
EW.com,
23 July 2025
-
Soak up the gall of losing, absorb the horrible information, feel it to the full, go there—and then rebound, with superb elasticity.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
22 July 2025
Adjective
-
And the most unattractive thing in the world to me is a quitter.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
30 July 2025
-
But low interest rates resulted in unattractive investments with bond yields depressed, undermining a key source of investment returns for public pensions.—
Dan Doonan,
Forbes.com,
28 July 2025
Adjective
-
The practice is one of a sickening array of battlefield mistreatments recorded on video either by Ukrainian surveillance drones or Russian servicemen and then circulated on social media.—
Andrew Carey,
CNN Money,
28 July 2025
-
Especially when his head gave a sickening whirl, blackening for a second, and his limbs seized again.—
Ingrid Vasquez,
People.com,
24 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ugly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ugly. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share