bad news
Americannoun
noun
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An unwelcome thing or person, trouble. For example, That fire was bad news; we were underinsured for the damage , or No one wants Mary on the board—she's bad news . This term transfers literal bad news—the report of an unhappy recent event—to an unwanted or undesirable individual or circumstance. [ Slang ; 1920s]
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The amount charged for something, as in Waiter, bring our check—I want to see the bad news . [ Slang ; 1920s]
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.
Interest rates have been raised for the first time in more than three years - and it could be good and bad news for you.
From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026
Plus, Graphic Packaging Holding signaled that a flow of bad news may be reversing, and Iran is trying to re-assert its grip on the Strait of Hormuz.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2026
"If you put something containing cadmium in your mouth, or indeed if you swallow it, that is really bad news," he says.
From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026
The bad news was that he would have only four lines and his character wouldn’t have a name.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 28, 2026
“I’m afraid I’ve got bad news for you, Miss Lumley. I haven’t seen Madame Ionesco for days—not since the day I met you and the children, in fact.”
From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
