hideous
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hideous
- /ˈhɪd.i.əs/
- /ˈhɪd͡ʒəs/ obsolete
Rhymes with -ɪdiəs
Where it comes from
From Middle English hidous, from Anglo-Norman hidous, from Old French hideus, hydus (“that which inspires terror”), from earlier hisdos, from Old French hisda (“horror, fear”), of uncertain and disputed origin. Probably from Proto-West Germanic *agisiþu (“horror, terror”), from Proto-West Germanic *agisōn (“to frighten, terrorise”), from Proto-Germanic *agaz (“terror, fear”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂egʰ- (“to frighten”). Cognate with Old High German egisa, egidī (“horror”), Old English egesa (“fear, dread”), Gothic 𐌰𐌲𐌹𐍃 (agis, “fear, terror”).
Alternative etymology cites possible derivation from Latin hispidosus (“rugged”), from hispidus (“rough, bristly”), yet the semantic evolution is less plausible.
adjective more hideous · most hideous
- Extremely or shockingly ugly. I’m sorry to break it to you, but your dress looks truly hideous.
- Having a very unpleasant or frightening sound. He started up, growling at first, but finding his leg broken, fell down again; and then got upon three legs, and gave the most hideous roar that ever I heard.
- Hateful; shocking. [W]hat may this meane, / That thou, dead corſe, againe in compleate ſteele, / Reuiſſits thus the glimſes of the Moone, / Making night hideous, and vve fooles of nature, / So horridely to ſhake our diſpoſition, / VVith thoughts beyond the reaches of our ſoules?
- Morally offensive; shocking; detestable. when the wind is shrieking, and the men are yelling, and every plank thunders with trampling feet right over Jonah’s head; in all this raging tumult, Jonah sleeps his hideous sleep.
Similar: frightful, ghastly, grim, grisly, grotesque, horrid, dreadful, terrible
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: ugly, repulsive, horrific, outrageous, offensive, horrid, loathsome, heinous, awful, repugnant, godforsaken, detestable, execrable, odious, abominable, deplorable
Translations
Every language
adj extremely ugly
| Español | chocante, espantoso, feísimo |
|---|---|
| Português | horrendo, medonho |
| Français | hideux |
| Deutsch | scheußlich |
| Italiano | orribile, orrendo |
| Ελληνικά | κακάσχημος kakáschimos |
| Русский | стра́шный strášnyj, ужа́сный užásnyj, отврати́тельный otvratítelʹnyj, уро́дливый uródlivyj, безобра́зный bezobráznyj |
adj hateful; shocking
| Español | chocante, truculento |
|---|---|
| Português | horrendo, hediondo |
| Français | atroce, répugnant |
| Deutsch | abscheulich |
| Italiano | odioso, detestabile |
| Ελληνικά | απαίσιος apaísios |
| Русский | стра́шный strášnyj, ужа́сный užásnyj, отврати́тельный otvratítelʹnyj |
adj distressing or offensive to the ear
| Português | horrendo, medonho, estridente |
|---|---|
| Français | strident |
| Deutsch | abscheulich |
| Ελληνικά | απαίσιος apaísios |
| Русский | стра́шный strášnyj, ужа́сный užásnyj, отврати́тельный otvratítelʹnyj |
Talk about this word "hideous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hideous. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. hideous. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hideous "hideous." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hideous.Cite this
@misc{hideous_2026,
title = {hideous},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hideous},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
