nasty

¹ American  

[nas-tee] / ˈnæs ti /

adjective

nastier, nastiest

1. physically filthy; disgustingly unclean.

   a nasty pigsty of a room.

   Synonyms:

   grimy, foul, dirty

   Antonyms:

   unstained, spotless, immaculate, clean

2. offensive to taste or smell; nauseating.

   This ointment is really nasty—couldn't they make it smell less vile?

   Synonyms:

   ugly, catty, bitchy, malevolent, malicious, mean, repellent, repulsive, sickening

3. offensive; objectionable.

   a nasty habit.

4. vicious, spiteful, or unkind.

   a nasty dog;

   a nasty rumor.

5. bad or hard to deal with, encounter, undergo, etc.; dangerous; serious: a nasty accident.

   a nasty cut;

   a nasty accident.

6. very unpleasant or disagreeable.

   nasty weather.

   Synonyms:

   inclement, stormy

7. morally filthy; obscene; indecent.

   a nasty word.

   Synonyms:

   smutty

8. Slang. formidable: a young pitcher with a nasty slider.

   the raw, nasty power of this engine;

   a young pitcher with a nasty slider.

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noun

plural

nasties

1. Informal. a nasty person or thing.

-nasty ² American  

1. a combining form with the meaning “nastic pressure,” of the kind or in the direction specified by the initial element.

   hyponasty.

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nasty ¹ British  

/ ˈnɑːstɪ /

adjective

1. unpleasant, offensive, or repugnant

2. (of an experience, condition, etc) unpleasant, dangerous, or painful

   a nasty wound

3. spiteful, abusive, or ill-natured

4. obscene or indecent

5. informal a cruel or mean person

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noun

1. an offensive or unpleasant person or thing

   a video nasty

-nasty ² British  

combining form

1. indicating a nastic movement to a certain stimulus

   nyctinasty

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Other Word Forms

• -nastic combining form
• nastily adverb
• nastiness noun

Etymology

Origin of nasty¹

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, further origin unknown

Origin of -nasty²

< Greek nast ( ós ) pressed close ( nastic ) + -y ³

Example Sentences

As Mr. Clark tells us, an allegation against the pastors was set in motion in 1835 by Count Finck von Finckenstein, a nasty moral scold and the villain of the story.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 27, 2026

Micron, a recent darling of the semiconductor industry, is now on a nasty six-day losing streak, which has erased about one-quarter of its value.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

I met him a few times off the pitch, lovely fella, but on the pitch he was nasty.

From BBC • Mar. 20, 2026

In August 2024, media executive Jeff Shell made his way to his lawyer’s office in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Century City to meet someone he had been told was behind nasty rumors about him.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026

“Trust me, my uncle Troy had a nasty run-in with a possum on a two-lane highway. He hasn’t been the same since.”

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas

Related Words

• awful
• dirty
• fierce
• horrible
• icky
• murderous
• noxious
• obnoxious
• ornery
• outrageous
• rough
• tough
• unpleasant
• vile
• vulgar