different between terrible vs redoubtable

English

Etymology

From Middle English terrible, from Old French, from Latin terribilis (“frightful”), from terre? (“I frighten, terrify, alarm; I deter by terror, scare (away)”). Compare terror, deter.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /?t?.??.bl?/, /?t?.??.bl?/
• Homophone: tearable, in some accents

Adjective

terrible (comparative terribler or more terrible, superlative terriblest or most terrible)

1. Dreadful; causing terror, alarm and fear; awesome

2. Formidable, powerful.
   • 1883: Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island

     […] and there was even a party of the younger men who pretended to admire him, calling him a "true sea-dog," and "real old salt," and such-like names, and saying there was the sort of man that made England terrible at sea.
3. Intense; extreme in degree or extent.

4. Unpleasant; disagreeable.

5. Very bad; lousy.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:frightening

Antonyms

• (very bad): excellent

Adverb

terrible (comparative more terrible, superlative most terrible)

1. (colloquial, dialect) In a terrible way; to a terrible extent; terribly; awfully.

Related terms

Translations

Further reading

• terrible in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• terrible in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.

Anagrams

• treblier

Catalan

Pronunciation

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /t??ri.bl?/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /te?ri.ble/

Adjective

terrible (masculine and feminine plural terribles)

1. terrible (causing fear)
2. terrible (formidable, intense)

French

Etymology

From Latin terribilis

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /t?.?ibl/

Adjective

terrible (plural terribles)

1. (all senses) terrible
2. (colloquial) great, excellent

Derived terms

• enfant terrible

Related terms

• terreur
• terriblement
• terrifier

Further reading

• “terrible” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

Spanish

Etymology

From Latin terribilis. Cognate with English terrible.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /te?rible/, [t?e?ri.??le]
• Hyphenation: te?rri?ble

Adjective

terrible (plural terribles)

1. terrible, awful, horrible (very bad)
2. appalling (shocking, causing consternation)
3. terrific (very great or intense)

Derived terms

• terribilísimo
• terriblemente

Related terms

• terror

Further reading

• “terrible” in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014.

English

Etymology

Borrowed from French redoutable (spelled redoubtable in early modern French).

Pronunciation

• (US) IPA^(key): /???da?t?b?l/

Adjective

redoubtable (comparative more redoubtable, superlative most redoubtable)

1. Eliciting respect or fear; imposing; awe-inspiring.

   The redoubtable New York Times has been called the "newspaper of record" of the United States.

2. (obsolete) Valiant.

Derived terms

Translations

French

Adjective

redoubtable (plural redoubtables)

1. Archaic spelling of redoutable.

Middle French

Adjective

redoubtable m or f (plural redoubtables)

1. fearsome

Descendants

• French: redoutable