1
as in hideous
unpleasant to look at
her first attempt at painting was pretty ugly—a portrait of her sister that was not at all flattering
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disgusting
causing intense displeasure, disgust, or resentment
an ugly suggestion for controlling the overpopulation of deer in the area
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ugly
Longtime veteran Corey Perry made a 20-plus-year career thanks in part to his ability to score ugly playoff goals.
—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
There’s also the ugly reality that Rikers holds more people with serious mental illness than any psychiatric hospital in America.
—Jonathan Lippman, New York Daily News, 29 Apr. 2026
Seeing the pathology view return brings back so many ugly memories for many autistic individuals like me.
—David Rivera, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026
But the bill is finally coming due, and the results could be ugly.
—Frank Landymore, Futurism, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ugly
Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 29 Apr. 2026
There’s also the ugly reality that Rikers holds more people with serious mental illness than any psychiatric hospital in America.
—Jonathan Lippman, New York Daily News, 29 Apr. 2026
Seeing the pathology view return brings back so many ugly memories for many autistic individuals like me.
—David Rivera, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026
But the bill is finally coming due, and the results could be ugly.
—Frank Landymore, Futurism, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ugly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ugly
Adjective
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The two hideous games between the Lakers and Rockets will likely come to mind relatively quickly, but the trend has been greater than just one series.—
John Hollinger,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2026
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Such is a snarky line that Emily Blunt delivers as Emily Charlton in The Devil Wears Prada, a character who would rather faint than wear something hideous.—
Christian Allaire,
Vogue,
21 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The water is disgusting-looking.—
Adam England,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
-
These words then take on guilt by association because of the things we have been socialized to find unpleasant, uncomfortable, or disgusting.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Cuba is miserable, and to travel there without noticing the misery is grotesque all by itself.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
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Suddenly, the Academy found itself getting beaten up on social media as yet another grotesque example of Hollywood’s wasteful ways.—
Kirsten Chuba,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Their banter is empty because outside the season’s premiere, The Boys hasn’t actually shown us this awful America, and how everyone within it, including celebrities, are at risk.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
29 Apr. 2026
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This state has had some awful governors, but none in modern times ever attempted anything so repugnant as exposing more children to deadly diseases, as DeSantis has.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Usually a team of elegant offense, Michigan instead clanked 13 triples off the rim and relied on its inside defensive ferocity to win a game nearly as aesthetically unpleasing as UConn’s 53-41 win over Butler in 2011.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
7 Apr. 2026
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Rosemary makes one of the best companion plants for apple trees because of its strong scent that's unpleasing to critters looking to snack on a juicy red apple.—
Ashlyn Needham,
The Spruce,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Your cab driver is taking you on a horrible route.—
Zach Schiffman,
Curbed,
24 Apr. 2026
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There’s enough cop shows, stories about how horrible the world is, enough plot lines that are similar to each other.—
Annika Pham,
Variety,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Allium can be planted behind hostas in the garden for a pop of color and vertical interest while the lush hosta foliage masks its unattractive leaves.—
Cori Sears,
The Spruce,
21 Apr. 2026
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Tokyo Scramble is a mess with its unattractive environments, lackluster stealth gameplay, inconsistent in-game systems, and laughably bad narrative beats.—
Zackery Cuevas,
PC Magazine,
14 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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But a radioactive cloud was wafting across Europe, setting off alarms in a Swedish laboratory nearly seven hundred miles away and slowly sickening tens of thousands of people.—
Lizzie Johnson,
New Yorker,
25 Apr. 2026
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That flight had twice aborted takeoff and declared an emergency due to an odor onboard that was sickening flight attendants.—
Aaron Cooper,
CNN Money,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ugly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ugly. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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