ugly

1 of 2

adjective

ug·​ly ˈə-glē 

uglier; ugliest

1

a

: offensive to the sight : hideous

b

: offensive or unpleasant to any sense

2

: morally offensive or objectionable

corruption—the ugliest stain of all

3

a

: likely to cause inconvenience or discomfort

the ugly truth

b

: surly, quarrelsome

an ugly disposition

4

: frightful, dire

uglily

ˈə-glə-lē 

adverb

ugly

2 of 2

adverb

: in an ugly manner

was acting ugly

Synonyms

Adjective

• grotesque
• hideous
• homely
• ill-favored
• monstrous
• unappealing
• unattractive
• unbeautiful
• uncomely
• unhandsome
• unlovely
• unpleasing
• unpretty
• unsightly
• vile

Examples of ugly in a Sentence

Adjective

an ugly shade of green

They avoided what could have been an ugly situation.

He has an ugly disposition.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Since winning at Boise State on Jan. 4 and blowing out Air Force at home four days later, the season had become a grind – a double-digit loss at New Mexico, a rare home loss against UNLV, a string of ugly wins against the Mountain West’s bottom-feeders after overcoming dangerously large deficits. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2025

Aside from being ugly, your chocolate will be grainy and crumbly and a little sad. —Matthew Korfhage, WIRED, 15 Feb. 2025

Adverb

It’s been ugly recently (rounded) 2023: down 5% 2022: down 9% 2021: down 5% 2020: down 4% The elections are another wildcard. —Bob Pisani, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2024

Georgia beat the Longhorns 30-15 in Austin earlier this year in a game that turned ugly toward the end as fans threw trash on the field after a controversial call by referees. —Ross Terrell, Axios, 2 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Old Norse uggligr, from uggr fear; akin to Old Norse ugga to fear

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Adverb

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing ugly

• (as) ugly as sin
• plug-ugly
• rear/raise its ugly head
• ugly duckling

Rhymes for ugly

• smugly
• snugly

Kids Definition

ugly

adjective

ug·​ly

ˈəg-lē

uglier; ugliest

1

: horrid or unpleasant especially to the sight : unsightly, hideous

2

: offensive entry 1 sense 3, repulsive

ugly habits

3

a

: likely to cause bother or discomfort : troublesome

an ugly situation

b

: quarrelsome

an ugly disposition

ugliness noun