rotten

[ rot-n ]

/ ˈrɒt n /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR rotten ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective, rot·ten·er, rot·ten·est.

decomposing or decaying; putrid; tainted, foul, or bad-smelling.

corrupt or morally offensive.

wretchedly bad, unpleasant, or unsatisfactory; miserable: a rotten piece of work; a rotten day at the office.

contemptible; despicable: a rotten little liar; a rotten trick.

(of soil, rocks, etc.) soft, yielding, or friable as the result of decomposition.

Australian Slang. drunk.

Words nearby rotten

rototiller, rototome, rotovate, rotproof, rotte, rotten, rotten apple, rotten borough, rotten egg, rotten ice, rotten to the core

Origin of rotten

1175–1225; Middle English roten < Old Norse rotinn, past participle of an unrecorded verb meaning “to rot”

SYNONYMS FOR rotten

1 fetid, rank.

2 immoral.

4 disgusting, unwholesome; treacherous.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR rotten ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR rotten

1 sound.

2 moral.

SEE ANTONYMS FOR rotten ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM rotten

rot·ten·ly, adverbrot·ten·ness, nounhalf-rot·ten, adjectiveun·rot·ten, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for rotten

It has grown from a rotten root—striving to replace human judgment with detailed dictates.
Red Tape Is Strangling Good Samaritans|Philip K. Howard|December 27, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Which to me, after the initial explosion of the Sex Pistols, always made Rotten kind of boring.
The Rancid Ballad of Johnny Rotten: His Memoir Seethes With Anger—And Charm|Legs McNeil|November 20, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Yeonmi had been hospitalized at the time for a stomach illness, likely from her diet of rotten potatoes.
How ‘Titanic ’Helped This Brave Young Woman Escape North Korea’s Totalitarian State|Lizzie Crocker|October 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Fittingly to that point, its Rotten Tomato score (as of Tuesday evening) was a flat 50 percent.
‘Selfie’ Is Both a Brilliant and Terrible TV Show|Kevin Fallon|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST

They know this is a rotten deal and they are demoralized, running faster and faster with no hope of catching up.
Why Your Doctor Feels Like a 'Beaten Dog'|Daniela Drake|September 11, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She really was a splendid animal, unhurt either by excessive work or—as many modern mothers are—by a rotten fashionable life.
Here and Hereafter|Barry Pain
Why should not a bit of rotten malaria act in a similar manner within the human frame?
Fragments of science, V. 1-2|John Tyndall
After the burial of the rotten boroughs came the railway, and a long time after the railway the artists and authors.
Highways and Byways in Surrey|Eric Parker
The examination of rotten sheep is not altogether free from danger.
Parasites|T. Spencer Cobbold
They are built on piles of wood, running out to some distance in the water, and covered with rotten, black-looking boards.
Life in the Clearings versus the Bush|Susanna Moodie

British Dictionary definitions for rotten

rotten

/ (ˈrɒtən) /

adjective

affected with rot; decomposing, decaying, or putrid

breaking up, esp through age or hard use; disintegratingrotten ironwork

morally despicable or corrupt

untrustworthy, disloyal, or treacherous

informal unpleasant, unfortunate, or nastyrotten luck; rotten weather

informal unsatisfactory or poorrotten workmanship

informal miserably unwell

informal distressed, uncomfortable, and embarrassedI felt rotten when I told him to go

(of rocks, soils, etc) soft and crumbling, esp as a result of weathering

slang, mainly Australian and NZ intoxicated; drunk

adverb informal

extremely; very muchmen fancy her rotten

Derived forms of rotten

rottenly, adverbrottenness, noun

Word Origin for rotten

C13: from Old Norse rottin; related to Old English rotian to rot 1

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