worst
- 01 A2 Elementary
adj.the most unpleasant, lowest quality, or most serious.
adj.the superlative degree of 'bad', indicating the extreme of poor quality, severity, or unpleasantness.
Simple“That was the worst film I have ever seen in my life.”
In context“The worst outcome of the negotiations would be a total breakdown in communication between the two regional powers.”
UsageAlways used with the definite article 'the' when preceding a noun.
PitfallThis is the most worst day. This is the worst day.Worst is already a superlative; do not use 'most' with it.
- 02 B1 Intermediate
adv.in the most harmful or least successful way.
adv.the superlative degree of 'badly', describing an action performed with the maximum degree of incompetence or negative effect.
Simple“Of all the players, he performed the worst during the final match.”
In context“The areas situated along the coast were the worst affected by the hurricane's landfall.”
UsageOften follows the verb or the object it modifies.
Synonymsleast wellAntonyms - 03 B1 Intermediate
n.the most difficult or unpleasant part of a situation.
n.the most negative or harmful possibility, part, or eventuality.
Simple“The rain was heavy, but the worst of the storm is now over.”
In context“Economists fear that the worst is yet to come regarding the rise in inflation rates.”
UsageUsually functions as the head of a noun phrase with 'the'.
- 04 C2 Proficiency
v.to beat someone in a fight or a competition.
v.to gain the advantage over or defeat an opponent.
Simple“The small army worsted their enemies despite being outnumbered.”
In context“The incumbent was worsted in the televised debate, failing to provide coherent answers to the moderator's questions.”
UsageThis is a transitive verb and requires a direct object.
Teacher's tipThis verbal use is rare in modern speech; students will mostly encounter it in older literature or formal historical accounts.
Usage worst ever · worst fires
From Middle English worste, wurste, warste, werste, wirste, from Old English wierrest, from Proto-Germanic wirsistaz, superlative form of ubilaz (“bad, evil”); compare worse. Cognate with Old Saxon wirsista, wirrista (“worst”), Old High German wirst, wirsesto, wirsisto (“worst”), Danish værst (“worst”), Swedish värst (“worst”), Icelandic verstur (“worst”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.