hideousness

noun

Definition of hideousnessnext
1
as in dreadfulness
the quality of inspiring intense dread or dismay the indescribable hideousness of the squalor in which the villagers are forced to live

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in badness
the state or quality of being utterly evil the hideousness of the defendant's alleged crimes should not prevent him from getting a fair trial

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hideousness What makes your own skin crawl isn’t just the hideousness of the violence but the unblinking matter-of-factness with which DaCosta films it. — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 16 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hideousness
  1. horror
  2. badness
  3. atrocity
  4. sinfulness
  5. awfulness
  6. evilness
  7. ghastliness
  8. vileness
Noun
  • After a four-year absence from British television following a horror crash involving former host Andrew Flintoff, the BBC said that work is underway on a new season.
    — Jake Kanter, Deadline, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Paranormal Activity, the play, builds to the sort of slick and grisly finale that would be just right for the end of a cruel horror movie, but that lands awkwardly onstage.
    — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of horror
Noun
  • On one side, a satanic figure named Randall Flagg who gathers his forces of badness to Las Vegas; on the other, the good guys, led by 108-year-old Mother Abigail in, of all places, Boulder.
    — Barbara Ellis, Denver Post, 15 Jan. 2026
  • The show premiered over Thanksgiving weekend, when people were tired and full and bored (and probably also horny), and countered our world’s unceasing badness with its world’s buoyant sweetness.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
Definition of badness
Noun
  • Emergency Lawyers, an independent group documenting atrocities in Sudan, said a drone targeted a group of civilians traveling Thursday in the desert town of Sowdari in North Korodofan state.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
  • These images laid the foundation and the ideology for every atrocity that has been committed against my people.
    — Cheryl V. Jackson, IndyStar, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of atrocity
Noun
  • But soon after, in Genesis 18, God tells Abraham of plans to investigate reports of sinfulness in Sodom and Gomorrah.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
  • Denver author Josiah Hesse was raised by Evangelical parents in churches that believe in the torments of hell, that their poverty is due to their sinfulness and lack of faith.
    — Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 1 Feb. 2026
Definition of sinfulness
Noun
  • In a world so full of dread and awfulness, why not take a moment to read anonymous petty literary gossip on the internet?
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
  • The relative excitement around the Rockies having arrived in San Diego at 6-6 is a reaction based on their relative awfulness.
    — Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Apr. 2026
Definition of awfulness
Noun
  • That was really what helped me into the character and into her evilness.
    — William Earl, Variety, 4 Oct. 2025
Definition of evilness
Noun
  • No amount of gore or ghastliness is off limits for the series, produced by horror champions Blumhouse, as Nicole Kidman's titular medical examiner pores over the remains of the dead.
    — Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 10 Mar. 2026
Definition of ghastliness
Noun
  • Many have used numbers and moral philosophy to fathom the vileness of slavery in America, for example.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Apr. 2026
Definition of vileness

Browse Nearby Words

hideous
hideousness
hideout
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Cite this Entry

“Hideousness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hideousness. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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