feel-bad

American  

[feel-bad] / ˈfilˈbæd /

adjective

Informal.

1. intended to make one feel unhappy, depressed, or dissatisfied, often to arouse one’s conscience or understanding.

   a feel-bad documentary about Nagasaki;

   feel-bad financial reports.

---

feel bad Idioms  

1. Also, feel bad about. Experience regret, sadness, embarrassment, or a similar unpleasant emotion. For example, I feel bad about not attending the funeral, or The teacher's scolding made Bobby feel bad. [First half of 1800s]

---

Etymology

Origin of feel-bad

First recorded in 1980–85; feel ( def. ) + bad ¹ ( def. ) on the model of feel-good ( def. )

Example Sentences

But for many, the series felt like an emotional balm in a year of contentious elections, protests and, of course, the pandemic — an exceptionally feel-good show in one of the most feel-bad years in memory.

From New York Times

Feel-bad stories about video chat ┏ Microsoft’s Skype struggles have created a Zoom moment.

From The Verge

The difference between those films and “Joker,” though, is that “The Blind Side” and “Bohemian Rhapsody” were conventional crowd-pleasers, while “Joker” is a violent, feel-bad bummer.

From New York Times

Still, it’s a violent, feel-bad bummer that will probably make over $300 million, which is more than most conventional crowd-pleasers can manage these days.

From New York Times

They are the feel-bad hits of the summer.

From The Guardian