gruesome

or grew·some

[ groo-suhm ]

adjective

1. causing great horror; horribly repugnant; grisly:

   the site of a gruesome murder.

2. full of or causing problems; distressing:

   a gruesome day at the office.

gruesome

/ ˈɡruːsəm /

adjective

1. inspiring repugnance and horror; ghastly

Derived Forms

• ˈgruesomely, adverb
• ˈgruesomeness, noun

Other Words From

• gruesome·ly adverb
• gruesome·ness noun
• un·gruesome adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of gruesome¹

1560–70; obsolete grue to shudder (cognate with German grauen, Dutch gruwen ) + -some ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of gruesome¹

C16: originally Northern English and Scottish; see grue , -some ¹

Example Sentences

CBS declined to show a replay of the hit Burrow absorbed because it was so gruesome.

From Washington Post

Unfortunately, Hayward suffered a gruesome leg injury in his Boston debut, missed the rest of the season and watched as Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown ascended, diminishing his offensive role.

From Washington Post

The touchdown pass was the second this season for Smith, who earned his first win since his own gruesome injury at FedEx Field in November two years ago.

From Washington Post

Anthony Mackie and Jamie Dornan star as New Orleans paramedics who encounter a series of bizarre, gruesome accidents in the sci-fi thriller Synchronic.

From Ars Technica

For some, the joyride can veer from titillating—think Goldshire, the sexy World of Warcraft town beloved by erotic role-players, or the thrill you get from making a nasty joke in Cards Against Humanity—to genuinely gruesome.

From Popular-Science

Cleaning the birds out is a slightly more gruesome experience.

From The Daily Beast

Going forward in our war against ISIS, sadly we will likely see more gruesome acts perpetrated by them against Americans.

From The Daily Beast

A shortage of pentobarbital has forced some states to improvise, often with gruesome consequences.

From The Daily Beast

Armed with the gruesome tools of the trade, Kaye and Armstrong did the dirty work before students arrived.

From The Daily Beast

Gupta has to entertain, as much as inform, around a gruesome situation.

From The Daily Beast

The guerrillas had hung the body of the corporal from a tree and there it dangled over the road, a gruesome object.

From Project Gutenberg

Was it any wonder that she was horrified when she recalled that gruesome episode of the death of a brave and honest man?

From Project Gutenberg

Well, it would seem rather gruesome, if girls were to be overpowered with that passion.

From Project Gutenberg

There was that in the mere form and outline of this gruesome wonder of the vegetable world that instinctively aroused aversion.

From Project Gutenberg

The wind appeared to blow it about very harshly, and a gruesome company of dragons and griffins encompassed it.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• appalling
• frightful
• ghastly
• grim
• grisly
• hideous
• horrendous
• horrid
• horrific
• horrifying
• lurid
• macabre
• morbid
• shocking
• terrible
• terrifying
• ugly
• weird