different between awful vs horrific
awful
English
Alternative forms
- awfull (archaic), aweful (obsolete), awefull (obsolete)
Etymology
From Middle English agheful, awfull, auful, a?efull, equivalent to awe +? -ful. Compare Old English e?eful, e?efull (“terrifying; awful”).
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /???f?l/, /???f?l/
- (General American) IPA(key): /??f?l/
- (cot–caught merger) IPA(key): /??f?l/
- Rhymes: -??f?l
- Homophone: offal (some accents)
Adjective
awful (comparative awfuller or more awful, superlative awfullest or most awful)
- Very bad.
- My socks smell awful.
- We saw such an awful film last night that we left the theater before the end.
- Exceedingly great; usually applied intensively.
- an awful bonnet
- I have learnt an awful amount today.
- (now dated) Causing fear or horror; appalling, terrible.
- 1839, J. Sheridan Le Fanu, Schalken the Painter
- There was an air of gravity and importance about the garb of the person, and something indescribably odd, I might say awful, in the perfect, stonelike stillness of the figure, that effectually checked the testy comment which had at once risen to the lips of the irritated artist.
- 1839, J. Sheridan Le Fanu, Schalken the Painter
- (now rare) Inspiring awe; filling with profound reverence or respect; profoundly impressive.
- 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, II.143:
- And then she stopped, and stood as if in awe / (For sleep is awful) […].
- 1819, Lord Byron, Don Juan, II.143:
- (now rare) Struck or filled with awe.
- (obsolete) Terror-stricken.
- Worshipful; reverential; law-abiding.
Synonyms
- See also Thesaurus:frightening
Derived terms
- awfulness
- awfully
Translations
Adverb
awful (not comparable)
- (colloquial) Awfully; dreadfully; terribly.
- (colloquial, US, Canada) Very, extremely.
- That's an awful big house.
- She seemed awful nice when I met her yesterday.
- He was blubbering away something awful.
Translations
See also
- awfully
Further reading
- awful in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- awful in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
awful From the web:
- what awful means
- what awful things happened in 2020
- what awful weather
- what awful weather she said
- what awful news
- what awful weather we are experiencing
- what does awful mean
- what is meant by awful
horrific
English
Alternative forms
- horrifick (obsolete)
Etymology
Borrowed from Latin horrificus, from horre? (“to be afraid”) + -fic? (“to make”).
Pronunciation
- (General American) IPA(key): /h????f?k/, /h????f?k/, /h????f?k/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /h????f?k/, /h????f?k/
- (General New Zealand) IPA(key): /h????f?k/, /h????f?k/
- Rhymes: -?f?k
Adjective
horrific (comparative more horrific, superlative most horrific)
- Horrifying, causing horror; horrible.
- Synonyms: see Thesaurus:frightening
Usage notes
- Like many terms that start with a non-silent h but have emphasis on their second syllable, some people precede horrific with an, others with a.
Related terms
- horrible
- horrifical
- horrification
- horrify
- horror
- horrendous
Translations
horrific From the web:
- what horrific mean
- what horrific experience did douglas
Share
Tweet
+1
Share
Pin
Like
Send
Share
you may also like
- awful vs horrific
- tactics vs manipulation
- terrifying vs mammoth
- calculate vs value
- nub vs polyp
- fabrication vs dissimulation
- sinful vs impure
- recount vs depict
- residual vs spare
- punishing vs brutal
- difficult vs disquieting
- irresponsibility vs puerility
- stealthy vs devious
- materialisation vs maturity
- barren vs impotent
- blighting vs tragic
- rewarding vs salutary
- unfruitful vs bootless
- missionary vs proselytiser
- extract vs chapter