bad 1 of 6

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as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard a bad first attempt at making meat loaf resulted in a soggy, inedible mess

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2
as in evil
not conforming to a high moral standard; morally unacceptable stealing is just plain bad

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as in sad
feeling unhappiness hearing about the world's miseries always makes him feel bad

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as in null
having no legal or binding force all known claims on the property were dismissed by the court as bad

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bad

2 of 6

adverb (1)

bad

3 of 6

noun (1)

ill

4 of 6

adjective (2)

1
as in sick
affected with nausea she grew ill from the constant rocking motion of the boat

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as in poor
falling short of a standard such ill behavior will not be tolerated

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ill

5 of 6

adverb (2)

ill

6 of 6

noun (2)

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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 bad
Adjective
Coming off their worst performance, the Sun Devils turned in perhaps their best. Doug Haller, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025 Judkins is getting the volume in Cleveland and should find success against Miami's weak run defense, which ranks third-worst in EPA allowed per rushing play. Jacob Camenker, USA Today, 19 Oct. 2025
Adverb
After an online Twitter feud where CZ accused SBF of allegedly bad-mouthing him to regulators, the Binance CEO announced on Sunday the company would be dumping all of its holdings of FTT, a token used by FTX customers. Tristan Bove, Fortune, 11 Nov. 2022 However, employees can’t be completely reckless on social media, making untrue or maliciously disparaging statements, or bad-mouthing their employer with broad-stroke commentary. Johnny C. Taylor Jr., USA TODAY, 8 Nov. 2022
Noun
Despite the obvious bad, there was undeniable good. Mellissa Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2023 Good drama is the choice between two bads. Hunter Ingram, Variety, 23 Mar. 2023
Adjective
However, it was postponed due to Pope Francis' ill health at the time. Simon Perry, PEOPLE, 17 Oct. 2025 Raducanu, who has been feeling unwell for the past week, and had to retire ill from her match against Ann Li at the Wuhan Open last Tuesday. Charlie Eccleshare, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Adverb
Starkey fell ill in 1994 with a leukemia diagnosis and passed away that same year, aged 48. Matt Grobar, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2025 If companies decline to share information about a data breach, this could leave others ill-prepared, especially those with less advanced security programs, Kennedy added. Julia Shapero, The Hill, 1 Oct. 2025
Noun
Pandora has opened her box and its ills are fully integrated into our world. Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025 Speaking ill of Mike Trout’s flawless game was impossible. Sam Blum, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for bad

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Cite this Entry

“Bad.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bad. Accessed 22 Oct. 2025.

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