hellish
Americanadjective
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of, like, or suitable to hell; infernal; vile; horrible.
It was a hellish war.
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miserable; abominable; execrable.
We had a hellish time getting through traffic.
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devilishly bad.
The child's behavior was hellish most of the day.
adjective
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of or resembling hell
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wicked; cruel
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informal very difficult or unpleasant
adverb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hellish
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.
With a massive shock of red hair, bone-white makeup and oversized brow, Curry looked like a hellish Bozo the Clown.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026
A woman whose dead father was discovered at an undertaker's three months after his funeral says her hellish ordeal has "crucified" her.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
"Ferns responded to and delivered the fuel that fanned the flames, triggering repeated massive wildfires. A truly hellish world."
From Science Daily ● Jul. 22, 2026
As a band played “The Blue Danube,” she blocked out her hellish surroundings and imagined herself on stage in Budapest, dancing to Tchaikovsky’s “Romeo and Juliet.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
It was the one kind gesture in a morning filled with hellish activity.
From "Warriors Don't Cry: A Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High" by Melba Pattillo Beals
Definitions 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.
