wicked
Americanadjective
-
evil or morally bad in principle or practice; sinful; iniquitous.
wicked people;
wicked habits.
- Synonyms:
- villainous, infamous, heinous, dissolute, depraved, corrupt, profligate, immoral, blasphemous, profane, impious, godless, ungodly, unrighteous
-
mischievous or playfully malicious.
These wicked kittens upset everything.
-
distressingly severe, as a storm, wound, or cold.
a wicked winter.
-
passing reasonable bounds; intolerably bad.
wicked prices;
a wicked exam.
-
having a bad disposition; ill-natured; mean.
a wicked horse.
-
spiteful; malevolent; vicious.
a wicked tongue.
-
extremely troublesome or dangerous.
wicked roads.
-
a wicked odor.
-
Slang. wonderful; great; masterful; deeply satisfying.
He blows a wicked trumpet.
adverb
adjective
-
-
morally bad in principle or practice
-
( as collective noun; preceded by the )
the wicked
-
-
mischievous or roguish, esp in a playful way
a wicked grin
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causing injury or harm
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troublesome, unpleasant, or offensive
-
slang very good
Usage
What are other ways to say wicked?
Someone or something wicked is morally bad in principle or practice. But calling someone or something wicked isn’t quite the same as calling them bad, evil, or ill. Find out why on Thesaurus.com.
Other Word Forms
- quasi-wicked adjective
- quasi-wickedly adverb
- unwicked adjective
- unwickedly adverb
- wickedly adverb
- wickedness noun
Etymology
Origin of wicked
First recorded in 1225–75; Middle English wikked, equivalent to wikke “bad” (representing adjective use of Old English wicca “wizard”; witch ) + -ed -ed 3
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.
It falls awkwardly between an ink-black comedy, in which everyone is wicked so murder can be treated with a wink, and a plucky, grounded story of an eager youth making steady progress.
The hard fact is that genius isn’t reserved for the worthy any more than misfortune is reserved for the wicked.
From Los Angeles Times
What better way to show the world a new side of yourself than to play the equally wicked fictional brother of one of modern literature’s most notorious slashers?
From Salon
"They're kind of the wicked stepmother of flowers... with the biggest carbon footprint, instead, look to try and buy some beautiful British flowers," she said.
From BBC
The tooth, which was wide at the base, tapered to a wicked point.
From Literature
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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.