ugly
Americanadjective
-
uglier,
comparative
-
ugliest
superlative
-
very unattractive or unpleasant to look at; offensive to the sense of beauty; displeasing in appearance.
- Synonyms:
- homely, unlovely, unsightly, uncomely, hard-featured, ill-favored
- Antonyms:
- beautiful
-
disagreeable; unpleasant; objectionable.
ugly tricks;
ugly discords.
-
morally revolting.
ugly crime.
-
threatening trouble or danger.
ugly symptoms.
- Synonyms:
- ominous, disadvantageous
-
mean; hostile; quarrelsome.
an ugly mood;
an ugly frame of mind.
-
(especially of natural phenomena) unpleasant or dangerous.
ugly weather;
an ugly sea.
- Synonyms:
- tempestuous, stormy
adjective
-
of unpleasant or unsightly appearance
-
repulsive, objectionable, or displeasing in any way
war is ugly
-
ominous or menacing
an ugly situation
-
bad-tempered, angry, or sullen
an ugly mood
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of ugly
First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English ugly, uglike, from Old Norse uggligr “fearful, dreadful,” equivalent to ugg(r) “fear” + -ligr -ly
Explanation
Ugly means "extremely unattractive." On Halloween, some people wear ugly masks as part of their scary costumes. Anything that looks or feels quite unpleasant is ugly. The adjective ugly can describe the way something or someone looks, but it can also describe behavior or actions — the ugly scene your little brother made at the toy store when he didn't get what he wanted or the ugly breakup of a friendship. Remember that when ugly becomes uglier and ugliest, the y becomes an i.
Vocabulary lists containing ugly
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.
See Examples For:
The results of that investigation could transform the death penalty debate by offering more evidence about our ugly recent history of executing the innocent.
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2026
Investors need to be on their guard against the pumpkin-spice latte effect, which is about to rear its ugly head.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
In the eyes of many people, vultures are downright ugly.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
“But then ‘American Idiot’ came up out of nowhere, done with heart from a place of total confusion about why the world is changing into this dark and ugly place.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
‘I know your type,’ he says, his voice an ugly snarl.
From "Code Name Kingfisher" by Liz Kessler
But uglier nooks are frozen in time as well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
But the situation is much uglier for the Raiders.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 11, 2026
Here’s where silver gets uglier than rare earths.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 30, 2025
Things are turning uglier by the week for West Ham.
From BBC ● Dec. 29, 2025
It is bigger and uglier than Gatlinburg, and has better parking, and so of course gets more visitors.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Still, the settlement agreement bars either side from appealing Liman’s ruling, potentially drawing one of Hollywood’s ugliest recent legal fights to a close.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026
“It was probably the ugliest environment that I’ve been in,” said one respondent.
From Barron's ● Feb. 20, 2026
The pair clearly reinforce each other’s ugliest tendencies.
From Salon ● Feb. 18, 2026
The site was designed by a young team led by architect Norman Engleback and was voted "Britain's ugliest building" by readers of the Daily Mail when it first opened in October 1967.
From BBC ● Feb. 10, 2026
We’re in perhaps the ugliest forest I’ve ever seen.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
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.
