terrible
Americanadjective
-
very serious or extreme
a terrible cough
-
informal of poor quality; unpleasant or bad
a terrible meal
a terrible play
-
causing terror
-
causing awe
the terrible nature of God
Usage
What does terrible mean? Terrible is commonly used to mean extremely bad—awful, dreadful, or horrible.It can also mean severe, as in I have a terrible case of the flu. (Of course, this sense of the word often overlaps with its meaning of “extremely bad.”)When it’s used to describe a person, terrible often means extremely disagreeable or cruel.Terrible is also a somewhat formal way of describing something as having great power or being worthy of awe. This sense of terrible is especially used to describe supernatural power, as in The wizard is known to wield a terrible force with his staff. Much less commonly, terrible can mean literally causing terror, but the related word terrifying is much more commonly used to mean this.Example: Everyone seems to like that restaurant, but I had a terrible experience there—bad food and even worse service.
Other Word Forms
- terribleness noun
- unterrible adjective
Etymology
Origin of terrible
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin terribilis, equivalent to terr(ēre) “to frighten” + -ibilis -ible
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"There's a terrible algebra situation going on here of all of these things will equal 'bye-bye'."
From BBC
There were various lows during England's terrible Ashes tour of Australia, many of which have been pored over endlessly in recent months.
From BBC
"If it would be cut again, it would be terrible," she said.
From Barron's
Kiki pushed a stroller back and forth, back and forth, like if she stopped moving, something terrible would happen.
From Literature
Deadwood’s abrupt silence felt, to some, like a terrible omen.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
