How do you use "awful" in a sentence?

The weather has been absolutely awful all week. I felt awful about forgetting her birthday. There was an awful lot of traffic on the motorway.

awful

Q: What does "awful" mean?

Extremely bad, unpleasant, or of poor quality Awful describes something that is very bad, terrible, or unpleasant. In informal British English, it can also be used as an intensifier meaning 'very' or 'extremely'. The word has shifted dramatically from its original meaning of 'inspiring awe'.

Vocabulary Word BritishAmerican ★★★☆☆ Moderate Neutral

Practica con tarjetas, cuestionarios y audio en WordLoci →

Significado: Extremely bad, unpleasant, or of poor quality

极坏的，令人不快的，质量差的

terrible, desagradable o de mala calidad

ひどい、不快な、質の悪い

끔찍한, 불쾌한, 질이 나쁜

Awful describes something that is very bad, terrible, or unpleasant. In informal British English, it can also be used as an intensifier meaning 'very' or 'extremely'. The word has shifted dramatically from its original meaning of 'inspiring awe'.

「awful」描述非常糟糕、可怕或令人不快的事物。在非正式的英式英语中，它也可以用作加强语气的词，意思是'非常'或'极其'。这个词的意思已经从原来的'令人敬畏的'发生了巨大变化。

«Awful» describe algo que es muy malo, terrible o desagradable. En inglés británico informal, también puede usarse como intensificador con el significado de 'muy' o 'extremadamente'. La palabra ha cambiado dramáticamente de su significado original de 'inspirar asombro'.

「awful」は非常に悪い、ひどい、または不快なものを表します。非公式なイギリス英語では、「とても」や「極めて」という意味の強調語としても使用できます。この言葉は元の「畏敬の念を起こさせる」という意味から劇的に変化しました。

awful은 매우 나쁘거나, 끔찍하거나, 불쾌한 것을 묘사한다. 비격식 영국 영어에서는 '매우' 또는 '극도로'를 뜻하는 강조어로 사용되기도 한다. 이 단어는 원래 '경외심을 불러일으키는'이라는 의미에서 크게 변화했다.

Ejemplos

The weather has been absolutely awful all week.
这周的天气真是糟糕透了。
El tiempo ha sido absolutamente horrible toda la semana.
今週はずっとひどい天気だった。
이번 주 내내 정말 끔찍한 날씨였다.
I felt awful about forgetting her birthday.
忘记她的生日，我感到很愧疚。
Me sentí terrible por olvidar su cumpleaños.
彼女の誕生日を忘れて本当に申し訳なく思った。
그녀의 생일을 잊어서 정말 미안했다.
There was an awful lot of traffic on the motorway.
高速公路上的交通非常拥堵。
Había muchísimo tráfico en la autopista.
高速道路はものすごい渋滞だった。
고속도로에 어마어마한 교통 체증이 있었다.

Pronunciación

Guía de uso

Contexto: general

Tono: neutral

Origen e historia

From Middle English 'agheful' meaning 'inspiring awe, worthy of respect', from 'aghe' (awe) + '-ful'. Originally positive, meaning 'awe-inspiring'. The sense degraded to 'very bad' by the 19th century — one of English's great meaning reversals.

Contexto cultural

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal

Más de este tema

be ★★★★★ To exist or live; to have a particular quality, state, or... and ★★★★★ Used to connect words, phrases, or clauses of equal impor... of ★★★★★ Expressing the relationship between a part and a whole; b... to ★★★★★ Expressing direction, destination, or the infinitive form... a ★★★★★ Used before a noun to indicate one single thing or person in ★★★★★ Located inside a place, area, or container; during a peri...