notorious
adj.adj. famous for something bad. You use this to describe a person or place that has a very poor reputation.
adj. widely and unfavourably known for a particular negative trait or deed. While historically neutral, modern usage is almost exclusively pejorative.
The city is notorious for its heavy traffic.
The restaurant became notorious for its terrible service and cold food, leading to its eventual closure.
The region is notorious for its unpredictable weather patterns, which have historically thwarted even the most seasoned maritime explorers attempting to navigate the narrow straits.
From Late Middle English notoryous, from Medieval Latin nōtōrius (“evident, known; famous, well-known; infamous”), from Latin nōtus (“known, recognized; familiar, widely known; famous, well-known; infamous”) + -tōrius (suffix forming adjectives). Nōtus is the perfect passive participle of nōscō (“to become acquainted with or learn about (something); (rare) to be familiar with, recognize”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃- (“to know; to recognize”). cognates * Catalan notori (“well-known”) * Middle French notoire (Anglo-Norman notoire, notoir, notore, notorie, modern French notoire (“notorious; well-known”)) * Italian notorio (“notorious; well-known”) * Portuguese notorjo (obsolete), notório (“illustrious; open, public; notorious”) * Spanish notorio (“apparent, clear, obvious; well-known”)
Typically followed by the preposition 'for' when specifying the reason for the reputation.
He is notorious for his great successHe is famous for his great successNotorious has a negative connotation; it should not be used for positive achievements.