1
: extremely disagreeable or objectionable
awful food
awful behavior
an awful experience
2
informal
: exceedingly great
—used as an intensive
an awful lot of money
3
: inspiring awe
… the presence of Nature in all her awful loveliness.—
George Eliot
George Eliot
awfully
ˈȯ-fə-lē 
adverb
especially as an adverb of adjective senses 3 and 4 -flē
an awfully [=extremely] long time
behaving awfully
Using Awful as an Adjective and Adverb: Usage Guide
Some grammarians take issue with the senses of awful and awfully that do not convey the etymological connection with awe. However, senses 1 and 2 of the adjective were being used in speech and casual writing by the late 18th century.
It is an awful while since you have heard from me …
—John Keats (letter)
John Keats (letter)
There was an awful crowd …
—Sir Walter Scott (letter)
Sir Walter Scott (letter)
This is an awful thing to say to Oil Painters …
—William Blake
William Blake
Adverbial use of awful as an intensifier began to appear in print in the early 19th century, as did the senses of awfully corresponding to senses 1 and 2 of the adjective. Awfully continues to enjoy widespread use in newspapers and the like.
It is worth remembering that the vote in the Senate about the Gulf War was an awfully close 53 to 47 …
—James P. Rubin
James P. Rubin
"Let the good times roll" can be an awfully alluring philosophy …
—Rod Dreher
Rod Dreher
The adverb awful, on the other hand, is largely restricted to informal prose and to the spoken language it emulates and is chiefly an American use.
I tell them that seven years is an awful long time.
—Kenneth Feinberg
Kenneth Feinberg
Awful quiet out there, I thought. Disquietingly quiet.
—Mike Sutter
Mike Sutter
"There are some awful good golfers playing in the tournament this week," observed Cook.
—George Geise
George Geise
Synonyms
Adjective
- abhorrent
- abominable
- appalling
- disgusting
- distasteful
- dreadful
- evil
- foul
- fulsome
- gross
- hideous
- horrendous
- horrible
- horrid
- loathsome
- nasty
- nauseating
- nauseous
- noisome
- noxious
- obnoxious
- obscene
- odious
- offensive
- rancid
- repellent
- repellant
- repugnant
- repulsive
- revolting
- scandalous
- shocking
- sickening
- ugly
Adverb
- achingly
- almighty
- archly
- awfully
- badly
- beastly
- blisteringly
- bone
- colossally
- corking
- cracking
- damn
- damned
- dang
- deadly
- desperately
- eminently
- enormously
- especially
- ever
- exceedingly
- exceeding
- extra
- extremely
- fabulously
- fantastically
- far
- fiercely
- filthy
- frightfully
- full
- greatly
- heavily
- highly
- hugely
- immensely
- incredibly
- intensely
- jolly
- majorly
- mightily
- mighty
- monstrous [chiefly dialect]
- mortally
- most
- much
- particularly
- passing
- rattling
- real
- really
- right
- roaring
- roaringly
- seriously
- severely
- so
- sore
- sorely
- spanking
- specially
- stinking
- such
- super
- supremely
- surpassingly
- terribly
- that
- thumping
- too
- unco
- uncommonly
- vastly
- very
- vitally
- way
- whacking
- wicked
- wildly
Examples of awful in a Sentence
Adjective
They heard the most awful sounds.
Awful things began to happen.
He has some awful disease.
That joke is just awful.
That's an awful thing to say.
Who painted the house that awful color?
The mountains have an awful majesty.
Adverb
We haven't heard from him in an awful long time.
You've come an awful long way.
Recent Examples on the Web
Emma Soren, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
Jean Dujardin, the French actor who won an Academy Award for that awful silent-movie spoof The Artist, is almost unrecognizable in On the Wandering Paths (Sur les chemins noirs).
—Armond White, National Review, 1 Nov. 2024
Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 26 May 2022
First, there is the question whether the awful-looking restraint maneuver Chauvin used was actually authorized at the time, or at least not clearly forbidden.
—D.j. Tice, Star Tribune, 20 Feb. 2021
See all Example Sentences for awful 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Adjective
For the evening, the stews break out their coral dresses instead of blacks which are pretty awful.
—Emma Soren, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
Jean Dujardin, the French actor who won an Academy Award for that awful silent-movie spoof The Artist, is almost unrecognizable in On the Wandering Paths (Sur les chemins noirs).
—Armond White, National Review, 1 Nov. 2024
Adverb
Someone who has worked awful hard, has a great skill set, four years of college, four years of lifting, four years of game-planning at a high level in Division III.
—Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 26 May 2022
First, there is the question whether the awful-looking restraint maneuver Chauvin used was actually authorized at the time, or at least not clearly forbidden.
—D.j. Tice, Star Tribune, 20 Feb. 2021
See all Example Sentences for awful
Dictionary Entries Near awful
Cite this Entry
“Awful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/awful. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
awful
1 of 2 adjective
aw·ful
ˈȯ-fəl
1
2
: extremely disagreeable or unpleasant
3
informal
: very great
an awful lot of money
awfulness
noun
awful
2 of 2 adverb
: very entry 2 sense 1
awful tired
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