bad trip

American  

noun

Slang.

1. a mentally or physically horrifying drug-taking experience, as one accompanied by nightmarish hallucinations or by physical pain.

2. a dismayingly unpleasant experience.

   He was so ill-prepared that college was a bad trip for him.

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bad trip Idioms  

1. A frightening or otherwise very unpleasant experience, as in Given the poor turnout, her book tour was a bad trip. The term comes from drug slang of the mid-1900s, where it meant experiencing hallucinations, pain, or other terrible effects from taking a drug, especially LSD. It was then extended to any extremely unpleasant experience.

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Etymology

Origin of bad trip

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

"It wasn't a bad trip at all, because it's worth standing by people even though you don't win every race," Vance told Fox News' "Special Report with Bret Baier" on Monday.

From Barron's • Apr. 13, 2026

Sometimes people experience anxiety, panic and feeling disconnected from their sense of self, but what makes it a "bad trip" depends on the individual's resources, support and integration of the experience, Argyri said.

From Salon • Jun. 6, 2025

But it peaked with a merry run through “Highway to Hell” that made you wonder whether there’s any bad trip AC/DC couldn’t rebrand as a good time.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 9, 2023

It was as if this last year of Covid-19, barbed wire and insurrection had simply been one bad trip.

From New York Times • Jun. 18, 2021

I got some breakfast on deck and it wasn’t a bad trip.

From "Life Is So Good" by George Dawson