nasty

adjective

nas·​ty ˈna-stē How to pronounce nasty (audio)
nastier; nastiest
1
a
: disgustingly filthy
nasty living conditions
b
: physically repugnant
a nasty taste
2
: indecent, obscene
nasty language
3
: mean, tawdry
living a cheap and nasty lifeG. B. Shaw
4
a
: extremely hazardous (see hazardous sense 1) or harmful
a nasty undertow
b
: causing severe pain or suffering
a nasty wound
a nasty fall
c
: sharply unpleasant : disagreeable
nasty weather
5
a
: difficult to understand or deal with
a nasty problem
a nasty curveball
b
: psychologically unsettling : trying
a nasty fear that she was lost
6
: lacking in courtesy or sportsmanship
a nasty trick
nastily adverb
nastiness noun
nasty noun
Choose the Right Synonym for nasty

dirty, filthy, foul, nasty, squalid mean conspicuously unclean or impure.

dirty emphasizes the presence of dirt more than an emotional reaction to it.

a dirty littered street

filthy carries a strong suggestion of offensiveness and typically of gradually accumulated dirt that begrimes and besmears.

a stained greasy floor, utterly filthy

foul implies extreme offensiveness and an accumulation of what is rotten or stinking.

a foul-smelling open sewer

nasty applies to what is actually foul or is repugnant to one expecting freshness, cleanliness, or sweetness.

it's a nasty job to clean up after a sick cat

In practice, nasty is often weakened to the point of being no more than a synonym of unpleasant or disagreeable.

had a nasty fall
his answer gave her a nasty shock

squalid adds to the idea of dirtiness and filth that of slovenly neglect.

squalid slums

All these terms are also applicable to moral uncleanness or baseness or obscenity.

dirty then stresses meanness or despicableness

don't ask me to do your dirty work

, while filthy and foul describe disgusting obscenity or loathsome behavior

filthy street language
a foul story of lust and greed

, and nasty implies a peculiarly offensive unpleasantness.

a stand-up comedian known for nasty humor

Distinctively, squalid implies sordidness as well as baseness and dirtiness.

engaged in a series of squalid affairs

Examples of nasty in a Sentence

She has a nasty habit of biting her fingernails. The medicine left a nasty taste in my mouth. That nasty old man yelled at me just for stepping on his lawn! He sent a nasty letter to the company. She's got quite a nasty temper. He said lots of downright nasty things about her. She called him a few nasty names and left.
Recent Examples on the Web In the roughly two and a half centuries since the field of geology was founded, debates over dividing time have often turned nasty. Elizabeth Kolbert, The New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2024 Tesla is recalling every Cybertruck it’s sold due to a rather nasty problem with accelerator pedals getting stuck. Rachyl Jones, Fortune, 19 Apr. 2024 The Get Back sessions get nasty, with George quitting the band (offscreen). Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 18 Apr. 2024 The nastiest, most murderous people on earth are aligned. Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 16 Apr. 2024 The latest Disney-Trian contest devolved into one of the largest, priciest and nastiest in history. Brooks Barnes, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024 The average household microwave can get a pretty good workout, and those nasty food splatters are not just unsightly. Maryal Miller Carter, USA TODAY, 26 Mar. 2024 While these are great for protecting your guts against nasty stuff like salmonella, the reality is, that none of these elements are great for your hair or your scalp. Sophia Panych, Allure, 2 Apr. 2024 Industry leaders expect banana prices to start rising as climate change and a nasty fungus affect banana crops, according to CBS News. Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 29 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nasty.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of nasty was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near nasty

Cite this Entry

“Nasty.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nasty. Accessed 24 Apr. 2024.

Kids Definition

nasty

adjective
nas·​ty ˈnas-tē How to pronounce nasty (audio)
nastier; nastiest
1
: very dirty or foul : filthy
2
: morally disgusting or degrading
3
: disagreeable sense 1, unpleasant
nasty weather
4
: spiteful, ill-natured
a nasty temper
a nasty trick
5
: harmful, dangerous
a nasty fall on the ice
nastily adverb
nastiness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on nasty

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