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awful

awful

58 1.1
Very frightening and causing fear or dread
  • adjective
  • /ˈɔːfəl/
  • Archaic
: terrible
  • Something awful was about to happen.
  • face the awful consequences

And that helped prevent what could have been an awful tragedy at that particular school.

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Examples

Synonyms

horrible
vsawful
∞ 1.5

Very bad or frightening in a way that makes you feel upset

is broader, also covering nonhorrific serious or frightening things
frightening
vsawful
248 3.0

Causing someone to feel afraid

is stronger, often implying extreme terror or serious danger
terrifying
vsawful
243 5.3

Making people feel very afraid

is broader, covering terror and also very serious negative situations
horrific
vsawful
200 5.5

Causing great fear or shock

covers the same shock but also simple seriousness or danger
dire
vsawful
143 6.9

Very serious, frightening, and needing action quickly

emphasizes fear and terror more than urgency or seriousness
dreadful
vsawful
134 3.7

Very bad and unpleasant, often causing fear or shock

focuses more on fear and terror rather than just badness
horrifying
vsawful
103 4.5

Makes people feel very afraid and shocked

is broader, including both horror and general serious harm
appalling
vsawful
84 5.6

Causing shock and strong disgust because it is very bad

is closer to pure fear or terror rather than moral shock
horrendous
vsawful
79 7.0

Very shocking and scary, causing fear or disgust

is broader, used for fear and other very bad situations
eerie
vsawful
77 5.1

A strange, frightening feeling as if ghosts are nearby

is more general, covering clear terror beyond odd atmosphere
grim
vsawful
63 4.5

Very bad and shocking, causing people to feel fear or sadness

is broader, used for outright fear or very serious danger
horrid
vsawful
47 4.1

A very unpleasant thing that shocks or disgusts you

leans more toward direct fright or grave danger instead of offense
ghastly
vsawful
41 6.8

Causing great fear and shock, often like death or ghosts

is similar but also fits severe but non-supernatural cases
wicked
vsawful
40 3.1

A very bad or painful condition, for example during illness

is more about causing fear or dread rather than mere badness
fearsome
vsawful
34 4.8

Very frightening and likely to make people afraid

is similar but also applies to very serious nonthreatening matters
god-awful
vsawful
  • Informal
29 8.4

Very bad and unpleasant

is more about causing terror or grave concern rather than mere badness
terrible
vsawful
27 1.0

So frightening that people feel afraid

is the stronger term stressing extreme fright or seriousness
abysmal
vsawful
26 7.1

Very bad or of poor quality

is more tied to producing fear or dread than sheer poor quality
fearful
vsawful
20 2.9

Causing strong fear and worry

is slightly stronger, stressing extreme fright or seriousness
nightmarish
vsawful
16 7.0

Very frightening and unpleasant, like a bad dream

is more general, applying to terror or very bad reality
atrocious
vsawful
7 7.6

Very cruel and shocking, causing great pain and fear

is more general, covering fear beyond cruelty or gore
godawful
vsawful
  • Informal
4 8.2

Very bad and unpleasant, of poor quality

is stronger, implying true fear or serious danger rather than bad quality
eery
vsawful
  • UK
3 6.7

Strange in a way that makes you feel afraid or uneasy

is broader, used for direct terror or serious threats
hellacious
vsawful
  • Informal
2 9.0

Very bad or difficult and hard to deal with

focuses more specifically on causing fear or dread rather than difficulty
frightful
vsawful
2 4.2

Very bad or unpleasant in a strong way

is more about causing fear or dread rather than general badness
direful
vsawful
  • Archaic
1 9.9

Causing great fear or showing terrible danger

is more general, applying to both fear and other severe cases

Antonyms

323 1.0

Giving a gentle feeling of enjoyment

77 3.1

Makes someone feel less worried and calmer

1 2.6

An action that makes someone less angry or upset

How Scary

terrifying
243 5.3
horrifying
103 4.5
awful
  • Archaic
58 1.1
frightening
248 3.0
scary
∞ 1.0
unsettling
68 4.2

Surface Forms

awful positive
awfuller comparative
awfullest superlative

Morphology

awful = awe (semi-transparent) = awe + ful

The sense 'causing fear, dread' is related to the emotional component of 'awe' but narrowed toward fright, so the relation is clear but not fully literal.

Etymology

Awful is built from awe, and 'awe' can mean both wonder and fear, so awful can mean 'very frightening' or serious. That's why the word is used for things that cause dread or terror.