English dictionary, thesaurus, translations & etymology
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adj

horrible

HOR-ih-buhl
adj
1
Causing horror; extremely unpleasant or shocking.
"It was a horrible accident that no one wanted to talk about."
"The soup had a horrible taste."
2
Informal: very bad or unkind.
"Don't be horrible to your little brother."

How to Use Horrible

Learner’s notes

In plain EnglishVery unpleasant or shocking — used both for serious horror and, casually, for anything simply bad or unkind.

Common pairings
horrible smell horrible weather feel horrible

Word Forms

horribler comparative, more horrible comparative, horribles plural, horriblest superlative, most horrible superlative

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It was a _____ accident that no one wanted to talk about.

Etymology

First recorded in English around 1303, from Old French horrible/orrible, from Latin horribilis, from horrere ("to tremble") + -ibilis.

Related Words

Rhymes for horrible

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