horrific

[haw-rif-ik, ho-]

See more synonyms for horrific on Thesaurus.com

adjective

causing horror.

Origin of horrific

1645–55; < Latin horrificus, equivalent to horri- (combining form of horrēre to bristle with fear) + -ficus -fic

Related formshor·rif·i·cal·ly, adverb

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

Examples from the Web for horrific

Contemporary Examples

In its presence--jolting, sudden, horrific—the monster is the monster of grief.
Grief: The Real Monster in The Babadook
Tim Teeman
December 19, 2014
We love to laugh at Kim and Company because it distracts our souls from the horrific reality of their hermetic regime.
Pyongyang Shuffle: Hollywood In Dead Panic Over Sony Hack
James Poulos
December 19, 2014
One of the most horrific episodes of the Vietnam War is being made into a government-funded opera.
The My Lai Massacre Inspires an Opera
Asawin Suebsaeng
December 17, 2014
I always saw the horrific side of this seemingly benign environment.
Tim Burton Talks ‘Big Eyes,’ His Taste For the Macabre, and the ‘Beetlejuice’ Sequel
Marlow Stern
December 17, 2014
The refugee stories are compelling at first, but horrific details are numbing.
Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees
Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 15, 2014

Historical Examples

With horrific pants he emitted smokiest smoke and fiercest fire.
The Golden Age
Kenneth Grahame
The picture is a tragic one, cumulative in its horrific details.
The Merry-Go-Round
Carl Van Vechten
She merely sensed that it was red carnage, titanic, horrific.
Good References
E. J. Rath
What happened after that is more obscure and fraught with horrific suggestion.
The Fantasy Fan December 1933
Charles D. Hornig
The most fantastic and horrific of nightmares was actually materialised.
Tropic Days
E. J. Banfield

British Dictionary definitions for horrific

horrific

adjective

provoking horror; horrible

Derived Formshorrifically, adverb

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 horrific

adj.

"causing horror," 1650s, from French horrifique or directly from Latin horrificus "dreadful, exciting terror," literally "making the hair stand on end," from horrere "to bristle, to stand on end" (see horror) + -ficus, from stem of facere "to make, do" (see factitious). Related: Horrifically.

horrific

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;}}horrific

Examples from the Web for horrific

Contemporary Examples

In its presence--jolting, sudden, horrific—the monster is the monster of grief.

We love to laugh at Kim and Company because it distracts our souls from the horrific reality of their hermetic regime.

One of the most horrific episodes of the Vietnam War is being made into a government-funded opera.

I always saw the horrific side of this seemingly benign environment.

The refugee stories are compelling at first, but horrific details are numbing.

Historical Examples

With horrific pants he emitted smokiest smoke and fiercest fire.

The picture is a tragic one, cumulative in its horrific details.

She merely sensed that it was red carnage, titanic, horrific.

What happened after that is more obscure and fraught with horrific suggestion.

The most fantastic and horrific of nightmares was actually materialised.

horrific

Word Origin and History for horrific

adj.

Origin of horrific