ENGLISH
REFERENCE

horrendous

adj.
B2 Upper Intermediate US //ˌhɔˈɹɛndəs// UK //hɒɹˈɛndəs// hor·ren·dous

adj. extremely bad, unpleasant, or shocking. You use it to describe something that is very difficult to deal with or look at.

adj. extremely unpleasant, horrifying, or terrible in quality. Often used to describe sensory experiences, situations, or statistics that are exceptionally negative.


SIMPLE

The traffic on the way to work was horrendous.

CONTEXTUAL

The victims of the storm described the horrendous conditions they faced while waiting for rescue teams to arrive.

COMPLEX

The report detailed the horrendous living conditions in the overcrowded refugee camps, urging immediate international intervention to prevent a humanitarian disaster.

Synonyms
Origin

Borrowed from Latin horrendus, future passive participle (gerundive) of horreō (“I dread”) + -ous.

Usage

Typically used as a gradable adjective; frequently modified by intensifiers like 'absolutely' or 'truly'.

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