annus horribilis

/ (ˈænʊs hɒˈriːbɪlɪs) /

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noun

a terrible year

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Word Origin for annus horribilis

C20: from Latin, modelled on annus mirabilis, first used by Elizabeth II of the year 1992

Words nearby annus horribilis

annulose, annulus, annunciate, annunciation, annunciator, annus horribilis, annus mirabilis, Annwfn, ano-, anoa, anobiid

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

How to use annus horribilis in a sentence

Yet the scenery for this annus mirabilis production has always been rather flimsy.
The Volgograd Bombings and the Return of Big Terror to Russia|Michael Weiss|January 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was an annus mirabilis for the hideous (Putin, Assad, Cyrus), an annus horribilis for just about everyone else.
The Year in Awful: Worst Columns of 2013|Michael Moynihan|December 31, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Affleck later called the period the “annus horribilis of my life.”
A Look Back at ‘Gigli,’ the Infamous Bennifer-Starring Film, on Its 10th Anniversary|Marlow Stern|August 1, 2013|DAILY BEAST
The incident caps an annus horribilis for the Spanish Royal Family.
It's Not Good to Be the King|David Frum|May 18, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Finally, last season, Idol's annus horribilis, the wheels fell off the cart entirely.
Four Reasons American Idol Is Back From the Dead|Richard Rushfield|March 8, 2011|DAILY BEAST
The year 1814 was an annus mirabilis for England, as will be seen as it is unfolded.
Social England under the Regency, Vol. 1 (of 2)|John Ashton.
Only in a single poem, that of the "Annus Mirabilis," in 1671, had he given any true indications of his surpassing powers.
History of the English People, Volume VI (of 8)|John Richard Green
This has been everywhere an 'annus mirabilis' for bad weather, and it continues here still.
The PG Edition of Chesterfield's Letters to His Son|The Earl of Chesterfield
Nosti mores mulierum: Dum moliuntur, dum comuntur, annus est.
A Christian Directory (Volume 1 of 4)|Richard Baxter
Compare the medieval proverb:—'Hoc facit una dies quod totus denegat annus.'
Chaucer's Works, Volume 5 (of 7) -- Notes to the Canterbury Tales|Geoffrey Chaucer