ROTTEN Synonyms: 393 Similar and Opposite Words

rotten

adjective

ˈrä-tᵊn

Definition of rotten

as in spoiled

having undergone organic breakdown rotten, smelly meat that should have been thrown out

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in evil

not conforming to a high moral standard; morally unacceptable played a rotten trick and then lied about it

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in unpleasant

not giving pleasure to the mind or senses had a rotten time while on vacation

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in terrible

extremely unsatisfactory rotten housing conditions that no one should be forced to tolerate

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in poor

of low quality I can't do anything with these rotten tools

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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 rotten Admittedly, his rounded route in his final act last season for Chicago deserves all the rotten cabbage. — Jess Bryant, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2026 During a recent visit by the Tribune, East 100th Street outside Pullman Innovations smelled somewhere between rotten eggs and manure. — Finnegan Belleau, Chicago Tribune, 19 Aug. 2026 The inhabitants of rotten-tail buildings repurpose the old and improvise to find a way of surviving an economic storm. — Mark Leonard, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026 Remove any ripe or rotten food where the flies may have laid eggs. — Emma Jacobson, Bon Appetit Magazine, 13 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for rotten

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rotten

Adjective

People are throwing out spoiled food and lining up for hot meals, according to reports, while searching for laundromats, working Wi-Fi, cleaning wipes and diapers.

— Phillip M. Bailey, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
Fridge smells often come from spoiled food and mildew, which can be tackled with vinegar and baking soda.

— The Spruce, The Spruce, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of spoiled

Adjective

Presumably everybody wants the evidence to hold people who commit serious crimes accountable, but nobody wants to turn into the evil empire in the process.

— Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Her parents refuse to see that there is something unnatural about their new baby boy and that an evil other presence haunts their stately home.

— Tanya Fedak, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of evil

Adjective

Activewear After sweating it out in your beloved activewear, avoid using the hotter temperatures in the washing machine to sanitize and remove unpleasant odors.

— Ashlyn Needham, Southern Living, 26 Aug. 2026
The mediocre screen was an unpleasant surprise given that this thing advertised 100 percent sRGB gamut coverage when it was announced and on its product page for many weeks (the Internet Archive captures it here).

— ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of unpleasant

Adjective

But even without it, there seems to be some truth to the idea that if these teams were terrible businesses, they wouldn’t be sold for billions of dollars.

— Evan Drellich, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Not by tightening the siege on Iran directly, but by tightening the siege on those who help this regime, this terrible dictatorship.

— Mustafa Qadri, CNN Money, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of terrible

Adjective

Dozens of companies have withdrawn over the past decades due to poor profits, an uncertain business outlook and concerns about harm to their reputations from making arms, especially lethal weapons.

— Mia Osmonbekov, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
Along the way, the audience can expect tons of humiliation, terrible second prizes, and the guarantee that Robertson will turn at least one poor soul's wrong turn into several minutes of unhinged public destruction.

— Rebecca Rosman, NPR, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of poor

Adjective

The soil should be moist, faintly acid smelling, from its infusion of decayed compost.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 Aug. 2026
Rossi treated the paint surface, meanwhile, by removing oxidized varnish, decayed retouching, and incoherent integrations and additions, allowing viewers to appreciate the luminosity of Fra Angelico’s palette and the precision of his gilding.

— Brian Boucher, ARTnews.com, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of decayed

Adjective

Poor Anton has been left out of the drama all day, an effort by Billie and Samir to prevent an already bad futzing from escalating to something severe, and that’s never where Anton likes to be.

— Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
Although rarely seen, its reemergence earlier this summer is a signal of how bad the region’s ongoing drought has gotten, as well as a warning for the difficult months ahead.

— Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of bad

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rotted

rotten

rottenly

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

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Synonyms of rotten

adjective

Example Sentences

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