- superlative of bad.
worst
Americanadjective
-
bad or ill in the highest, greatest, or most extreme degree.
the worst person.
-
most faulty, unsatisfactory, or objectionable.
the worst paper submitted.
-
most unfavorable or injurious.
-
in the poorest condition.
the worst house on the block.
-
most unpleasant, unattractive, or disagreeable.
the worst personality I've ever known.
-
most lacking in skill; least skilled.
He’s the worst player on the team.
noun
adverb
-
in the most evil, wicked, severe, or disadvantageous manner.
-
with the most severity, intensity, etc.; in the greatest degree.
verb (used with object)
-
worsts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
worsted,
past participle, past
-
worsting
present participle
idioms
-
if worst comes to worst, if the very worst happens.
If worst comes to worst, we still have some money in reserve.
-
in the worst way, in an extreme degree; very much: Also the worst way.
She wanted a new robe for Christmas in the worst way.
-
get the worst of, to be defeated in; experience the most harm from.
New Jersey got the worst of the storm.
-
at worst, if the worst happens; under the worst conditions: Also at the worst.
He will be expelled from school, at worst.
adjective
adverb
-
in the most extreme or bad manner or degree
-
least well, suitably, or acceptably
-
(in combination) in or to the smallest degree or extent; least
worst-loved
noun
-
the least good or most inferior person, thing, or part in a group, narrative, etc
-
(often preceded by at) the most poor, unpleasant, or unskilled quality or condition
television is at its worst these days
-
the greatest amount of damage or wickedness of which a person or group is capable
the invaders came and did their worst
-
the weakest effort or poorest achievement that a person or group is capable of making
the applicant did his worst at the test because he did not want the job
-
-
in the least favourable interpretation or view
-
under the least favourable conditions
-
-
if all the more desirable alternatives become impossible or if the worst possible thing happens
-
to enjoy the least benefit from an issue or be defeated in it
verb
Usage
What is a basic definition of worst? Worst describes something as being bad in the highest degree possible. Worst is also used to mean a thing that is the baddest possible and to mean something done in the baddest manner possible. Worst has several other senses as an adjective, adverb, noun, and verb. Worst is a superlative of the word bad. Simply put, worst describes something as being the baddest out of a group, category, list, and the like. This can mean something is most evil, is least skilled, is most unsatisfactory, is of the poorest quality, or is most unpleasant. What someone thinks of as the worst something depends on what they’re judging that thing on. As with bad, worst is often a person’s opinion.
- Real-life examples: Everybody has a movie that they think is the worst (poorest quality or most unpleasant to watch) movie ever made. The worst student in a class could be the one who scores the lowest on tests or the one who misbehaves the most. A runner who records the worst time in a race is the one who ran the slowest. The worst person you know might be the one with the most unpleasant personality or who treats you the most poorly.
- Used in a sentence: Jessica got a 50 on the test, making her grade the worst in the class.
- Real-life examples: A person who is the least skilled at painting among a group of painters is the worst. A pie that is the least pleasant to eat out of a group of pies is the worst.
- Used in a sentence: I have played a lot of bad video games, but that one is the worst of them all.
- Used in a sentence: We didn’t get any runners on base, making today’s baseball game the worst one this year.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
worstsimple
-
worstssimple
-
have worstedperfect
-
has worstedperfect
-
am worstingprogressive
-
are worstingprogressive
-
is worstingprogressive
-
have been worstingperfect progressive
-
has been worstingperfect progressive
Past
-
worstedsimple
-
had worstedperfect
-
was worstingprogressive
-
were worstingprogressive
-
had been worstingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of worst
First recorded before 900; Middle English worste (adjective, adverb, and noun), Old English wur(re)sta, wyr(re)st, wer(re)sta (adjective and adverb); cognate with Old Norse verstr; see worse, -est 1
Explanation
The adjective worst describes the thing that is the least good, like this awful pizza, the worst we've ever had in our lives. Worst means "the least favorable outcome." You may have heard the saying "hope for the best but expect the worst." Well, it you get the worst, you know there is nothing more bad than that. If you are at your worst, you have never before felt or performed this poorly. Don't confuse worst with worse, which compares only two things. Your cold might be worse than your brother's but dad's is the worst of all.
Vocabulary lists containing worst
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:
If a claim is substantiated, the plagiarist is seen as sloppy or lazy at best, and fundamentally dishonest at worst.
From Salon ● Aug. 23, 2026
Today shows them to be one of the worst behaved.
From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026
It’s set in Los Angeles but the cafés and shops are obviously not local and the worst, most dated stock L.A. traffic footage can’t cover that up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
The removal of Jose Gabriel Espinoza comes as Bolivia suffers through its worst economic turbulence in four decades, which the center-right Paz, elected last year, is under pressure to fix.
From Barron's ● Aug. 21, 2026
“It’s just that this went from the worst Easter egg hunt ever to the weirdest Halloween group I’ve ever seen.”
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
Wacha allowed season worsts of six earned runs and three home runs against Baltimore in his previous start.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 1, 2022
Set franchise worsts for points, total yards and yards rushing allowed in season and blew four double-digit leads in eight home games.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 22, 2017
His .162 batting average, .237 on-base percentage and .276 slugging percentage were all league-wide worsts among players who batted at least 200 times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2017
He finished with a .229 batting average and .616 OPS, both career worsts.
From Washington Post ● Jul. 9, 2016
It seems like a long list of worsts.
From "Sparrow" by Sarah Moon
He often mixed silk and wool or silk and linen for a softer alternative to the heavy, stiff gabardines and worsted wools that were typical for men’s suits and jackets.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 4, 2025
Rolls upon rolls of flannel, worsted wool and cashmere are stacked in a space the size of a football field.
From Washington Post ● Nov. 20, 2017
It's made at Alfred Brown worsted mills, a century-old family business in Bramley in Leeds.
From BBC ● Feb. 9, 2016
One was a pale morning-sky blue; the next tan, of light material, intended for these terrible summers; the last a heavy worsted English three-piece, gray, for state visits.
From The New Yorker ● Feb. 3, 2014
He belonged to a walled city of the fifteenth century, a city of narrow, cobbled streets, and thin spires, where the inhabitants wore pointed shoes and worsted hose.
From "Rebecca" by Daphne du Maurier
He flew to the army, took upon him the command, and displayed all the abilities of a great general in out-manœuvring and worsting the generals and armies of Savoy.
From Great Men and Famous Women. Vol. 3 A series of pen and pencil sketches of the lives of more than 200 of the most prominent personages in History by Charles F. (Charles Francis) Horne
But if Michael, after thoroughly worsting you, asks me my opinion, I shall certainly give it him.
From Michael by E. F. (Edward Frederic) Benson
He followed up his success by worsting the Senones, Carnutes, and Menapii, while Labienus defeated the Treviri.
From The World's Greatest Books — Volume 11 — Ancient and Mediæval History by Sir John Alexander Hammerton
The flames, like devils thirsting, Lick the wind, where crackling spars Wage hellish warfare, worsting All the still, astonished stars!
From The History of "Punch" by M. H. (Marion Harry) Spielmann
He fought with two knights who asked the lady Canacê to wife, the terms being that none should have her till he had succeeded in worsting Camballo in combat.
From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Ebenezer Cobham Brewer
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.
