frightful

[frahyt-fuh l]

See more synonyms for frightful on Thesaurus.com

adjective

such as to cause fright; dreadful, terrible, or alarming: A frightful howl woke us.
horrible, shocking, or revolting: The storm did frightful damage.
Informal. unpleasant; disagreeable: We had a frightful time.

Informal. very great; extreme: That actor is very talented but a frightful ham.

Origin of frightful

Middle English word dating back to 1200–50; see origin at fright, -ful

Related formsfright·ful·ly, adverbfright·ful·ness, nounun·fright·ful, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for frightful on Thesaurus.com

1. fearful, awful. 2. hideous, dread, horrid, ghastly; gruesome.

Antonyms

1, 2. delightful.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for frightful

Contemporary Examples

All these frightful trends are already emerging—and they will accelerate every day that the diplomatic wrangling continues.
Shaming Russia for Arming Assad Won’t Help End Syria’s Civil War
Tamara Cofman Wittes
June 13, 2012
When the weather outside is frightful, board a plane and head to Florida.
Fresh Picks
Chris Santos
December 1, 2009
Today, it's worlds away from the cruel and frightful bigotry of that time.
McCain's Comedy Comeback
Mark Katz
October 17, 2008

Historical Examples

All her thought was how to get him away from the frightful place.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
It was rather a frightful place to go into in search of the source of a shriek.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald
There was a frightful grin of triumph twisting his mouth in this minute of punishment.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
Down almost to our own day the depredations of wolves were frightful.
The Roof of France
Matilda Betham-Edwards
For about five minutes it was the most frightful scene I have ever witnessed.
Ridgeway
Scian Dubh

British Dictionary definitions for frightful

frightful

adjective

very alarming, distressing, or horrifying
unpleasant, annoying, or extremea frightful hurry

Derived Formsfrightfulness, noun

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

Word Origin and History for frightful

adj.

mid-13c., "timid;" c.1600 "alarming;" from fright + -ful. In common with most -ful adjectives, it once had both an active and passive sense. Meaning "dreadful, horrible, shocking" (often hyperbolic) is attested from c.1700; Johnson noted it as "a cant word among women for anything unpleasing." Related: Frightfully.

frightful

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}frightful

Synonyms

Antonyms

Examples from the Web for frightful

Contemporary Examples

All these frightful trends are already emerging—and they will accelerate every day that the diplomatic wrangling continues.

When the weather outside is frightful, board a plane and head to Florida.

Today, it's worlds away from the cruel and frightful bigotry of that time.

Historical Examples

All her thought was how to get him away from the frightful place.

It was rather a frightful place to go into in search of the source of a shriek.

There was a frightful grin of triumph twisting his mouth in this minute of punishment.

Down almost to our own day the depredations of wolves were frightful.

For about five minutes it was the most frightful scene I have ever witnessed.

frightful

Word Origin and History for frightful

adj.

Origin of frightful