awful
[ aw-fuh l ]
/ ˈɔ fəl /
adjective
extremely bad; unpleasant; ugly: awful paintings; an awful job.
inspiring fear; dreadful; terrible: an awful noise.
solemnly impressive; inspiring awe: the awful majesty of alpine peaks.
full of awe; reverential.
extremely dangerous, risky, injurious, etc.: That was an awful fall she had. He took an awful chance by driving here so fast.
adverb
Informal. very; extremely: He did an awful good job of painting the barn. It's awful hot in here.
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decorum
Origin of awful
usage note for awful
Although some object to any use of awful or awfully in any sense not connected with a feeling of awe, both have been used in other senses for several centuries. Awful and awfully as adverbial intensifiers— awful ( ly ) hot; awful ( ly ) cold —appear in the early 19th century, following much the same pattern as horribly and dreadfully. As an adverb awful is less formal in tone than awfully. In the sense “inspiring awe or fear” awesome has largely replaced awful.
OTHER WORDS FROM awful
Words nearby awful
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Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for awful
British Dictionary definitions for awful
awful
/ (ˈɔːfʊl) /
adjective
very bad; unpleasant
archaic inspiring reverence or dread
archaic overcome with awe; reverential
adverb
not standard (intensifier)an awful cold day
Derived forms of awful
awfulness, nounWord Origin for awful
C13: see awe, -ful
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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