bad

¹

[ bad ]

adjective

worse worst(Slang) badder baddest

1. not good in any manner or degree.
2. having a wicked or evil character; morally reprehensible:

   There is no such thing as a bad boy.

   Synonyms: atrocious, criminal, sinful, base, corrupt, depraved

3. of poor or inferior quality; defective; deficient:

   a bad diamond;

   a bad spark plug.

4. inadequate or below standard; not satisfactory for use:

   bad heating;

   Living conditions in some areas are very bad.

5. inaccurate, incorrect, or faulty:

   a bad guess.

6. invalid, unsound, or false:

   a bad insurance claim;

   bad judgment.

7. causing or liable to cause sickness or ill health; injurious or harmful:

   Too much sugar is bad for your teeth.

8. suffering from sickness, ill health, pain, or injury; sick; ill:

   He felt bad from eating the green apples.

9. not healthy or in good physical condition; diseased, decayed, or physically weakened:

   A bad heart kept him out of the army.

10. tainted, spoiled, or rotten, especially to the point of being inedible:

    The meat is bad because you left it out of the refrigerator too long.

11. having a disastrous or detrimental effect, result, or tendency; unfavorable:

    The drought is bad for the farmers.

    His sloppy appearance made a bad impression.

12. causing or characterized by discomfort, inconvenience, uneasiness, or annoyance; disagreeable; unpleasant:

    I had a bad flight to Chicago.

13. easily provoked to anger; irascible:

    a bad temper.

14. cross, irritable, or surly:

    If I don't have my morning coffee, I'm in a bad mood all day.

15. more uncomfortable, persistent, painful, or dangerous than usual; severe:

    a bad attack of asthma.

16. causing or resulting in disaster or severe damage or destruction:

    a bad flood.

17. regretful, contrite, dejected, or upset:

    He felt bad about having to leave the children all alone.

18. disobedient, naughty, or misbehaving:

    If you're bad at school, you'll go to bed without supper.

19. disreputable or dishonorable:

    He's getting a bad name from changing jobs so often.

20. displaying a lack of skill, talent, proficiency, or judgment:

    a bad painting;

    Bad drivers cause most of the accidents.

21. causing distress; unfortunate or unfavorable:

    I'm afraid I have bad news for you.

    Synonyms: unhappy, unlucky, adverse

22. not suitable or appropriate; disadvantageous or dangerous:

    It was a bad day for fishing.

23. inclement; considered too stormy, hot, cold, etc.:

    We had a bad winter with a lot of snow.

24. disagreeable or offensive to the senses:

    a bad odor.

25. exhibiting a lack of artistic sensitivity:

    The room was decorated in bad taste.

26. not in keeping with a standard of behavior or conduct; coarse:

    bad manners.

27. (of a word, speech, or writing)
    1. vulgar, obscene, or blasphemous:

       bad language.

    2. not properly observing rules or customs of grammar, usage, spelling, etc.; incorrect:

       He speaks bad English.

28. unattractive, especially because of a lack of pleasing proportions:

    She has a bad figure.

29. (of the complexion) marred by defects; pockmarked or pimply; blemished:

    bad skin.

30. not profitable or worth the price paid:

    The land was a bad buy.

31. Commerce. deemed uncollectible or irrecoverable and treated as a loss:

    a bad debt.

32. ill-spent; wasted:

    Don't throw good money after bad money.

33. counterfeit; not genuine:

    There was a bad ten-dollar bill in with the change.

34. having the character of a villain; villainous:

    In the movies the good guys always beat the bad guys.

35. Sports. failing to land within the in-bounds limits of a court or section of a court; missing the mark; not well aimed.
36. Slang. outstandingly excellent; first-rate:

    He's a bad man on drums, and the fans love him.

noun

1. that which is bad:

   You have to take the bad with the good.

2. a bad condition, character, or quality:

   His health seemed to go from bad to worse.

3. Usually the bad. (used with a plural verb) evil persons collectively:

   The bad are always stirring up trouble.

adverb

, Informal.

1. badly:

   He wanted it bad enough to steal it.

bad

²

[ bad ]

verb

, Archaic.

1. a simple past tense of bid ¹.

bad

¹

/ bæd /

verb

1. a variant of bade

bad

²

/ bæd /

adjective

1. not good; of poor quality; inadequate; inferior

   bad soil

   bad light for reading

   bad workmanship

2. often foll by at lacking skill or talent; incompetent

   a bad painter

   bad at sports

3. often foll by for harmful

   smoking is bad for you

   bad air

4. immoral; evil

   a bad life

5. naughty; mischievous; disobedient

   a bad child

6. rotten; decayed; spoiled

   a bad egg

7. severe; intense

   a bad headache

8. incorrect; wrong; faulty

   bad pronunciation

9. ill or in pain (esp in the phrase feel bad )
10. regretful, sorry, or upset (esp in the phrase feel bad about )
11. unfavourable; distressing

    bad news

    a bad business

12. offensive; unpleasant; disagreeable

    bad temper

    bad language

13. not valid or sound; void

    a bad cheque

14. not recoverable

    a bad debt

15. slang.
    badderbaddest good; excellent
16. go from bad to worse
    to deteriorate even more
17. go bad
    to putrefy; spoil
18. in a bad way informal.
    1. seriously ill, through sickness or injury
    2. in trouble of any kind
19. in someone's bad books
    See book
20. make the best of a bad job
    to manage as well as possible in unfavourable circumstances
21. not bad or not so bad informal.
    passable; fair; fairly good
22. not half bad informal.
    very good
23. too bad informal.
    (often used dismissively) regrettable

noun

1. unfortunate or unpleasant events collectively (often in the phrase take the bad with the good )
2. an immoral or degenerate state (often in the phrase go to the bad )
3. the debit side of an account

   £200 to the bad

4. my bad informal.
   my fault or mistake

adverb

1. not_standard.
   badly

   to want something bad

Usage Note

The adjective bad meaning “unpleasant, unattractive, unfavorable, spoiled, etc.,” is the usual form to follow such copulative verbs as sound, smell, look, and taste: After the rainstorm the water tasted bad. The coach says the locker room smells bad. After the copulative verb feel, the adjective badly in reference to physical or emotional states is also used and is standard, although bad is more common in formal writing: I feel bad from overeating. She felt badly about her friend's misfortune. When the adverbial use is required, badly is standard with all verbs: She reacted badly to the criticism. Bad as an adverb appears mainly in informal contexts: I didn't do too bad on the tests. He wants money so bad it hurts. badly, good.

Derived Forms

• ˈbaddish, adjective
• ˈbadness, noun

Other Words From

• bad·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bad¹

First recorded in 1200–1250; Middle English badde, bad; origin uncertain; perhaps akin to Old English bæddel “hermaphrodite,” bædling “womanish man”

Word History and Origins

Origin of bad¹

C13: probably from bæd- , as the first element of Old English bǣddel hermaphrodite, bǣdling sodomite

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. bad off, in poor or distressed condition or circumstances; destitute: Also badly off. Compare well-off.

   His family has been pretty bad off since he lost his job.

2. go to the bad, to deteriorate physically or morally; go to ruin:

   She wept at seeing her son go to the bad.

3. in a bad way, in severe trouble or distress.
4. in bad, Informal.
   1. in trouble or distress.
   2. in disfavor:

      He's in bad with his father-in-law.

5. my bad, Slang. my fault! my mistake!
6. not bad, Also not so bad, not too bad.
   1. tolerably good; not without merit:

      The dinner wasn't bad, but I've had better.

   2. not difficult:

      Once you know geometry, trigonometry isn't bad.

7. to the bad, in arrears:

   He's $100 to the bad on his debt.

8. too bad, unfortunate or disappointing:

   It's too bad that he didn't go to college.

More idioms and phrases containing bad

• come to an end (bad end)
• feel bad
• from bad to worse
• get off on the wrong foot (to a bad start)
• give a bad name
• give bad marks to
• go bad
• in a bad mood
• in a bad way
• in bad faith
• in bad with someone
• in someone's bad graces
• leave a bad taste in one's mouth
• make the best of (a bad bargain)
• not a bad sort
• not bad
• poor (bad) taste
• run of (bad) luck
• too bad
• turn up (like a bad penny)
• with bad grace

Example Sentences

For instance, influenza can lead to serious lung infection and, at worst, death.

From Science Daily

When he crossed that threshold last week against Nebraska, Marks was feeling about as bad as he had all season.

From Los Angeles Times

Accepting most universities were struggling financially, Mr Grant said the UEA was in a worse position.

From BBC

"With my experience since '21," Verstappen says, "you just can’t afford bad results or massively missed opportunities that will at the end of the day really catch up with you in the championship."

From BBC

She said she feared Trump’s return to the White House would further incite those calling for book bans: “I don’t have lots of hope. It could get a lot worse.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• awful
• cheap
• dreadful
• inferior
• lousy
• poor
• terrible

When To Use

What are other ways to say bad?

The adjective bad is a broad term that can describe things that are not good in any manner, or more pointedly, things or people that have a wicked or evil character. How is bad different from evil, wicked, and ill? Find out on Thesaurus.com.