bad Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun that which is below standard or expectations as of ethics or decency
    badness.
    • take the bad with the good
  2. adjective having undesirable or negative qualities
    • a bad report card
    • his sloppy appearance made a bad impression
    • a bad little boy
    • clothes in bad shape
    • a bad cut
    • bad luck
    • the news was very bad
    • the reviews were bad
    • the pay is bad
    • it was a bad light for reading
    • the movie was a bad choice
  3. adjective satellite very intense
    big.
    • a bad headache
    • in a big rage
    • had a big (or bad) shock
    • a bad earthquake
    • a bad storm
  4. adjective satellite feeling physical discomfort or pain (`tough' is occasionally used colloquially for `bad')
    tough.
    • my throat feels bad
    • she felt bad all over
    • he was feeling tough after a restless night
  5. adjective satellite (of foodstuffs) not in an edible or usable condition
    spoilt; spoiled.
    • bad meat
    • a refrigerator full of spoilt food
  6. adjective feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone
    sorry; regretful.
    • felt regretful over his vanished youth
    • regretful over mistakes she had made
    • he felt bad about breaking the vase
  7. adjective satellite not capable of being collected
    uncollectible.
    • a bad (or uncollectible) debt
  8. adjective satellite below average in quality or performance
    • a bad chess player
    • a bad recital
  9. adjective satellite nonstandard
    • so-called bad grammar
  10. adjective satellite not financially safe or secure
    speculative; high-risk; risky.
    • a bad investment
    • high risk investments
    • anything that promises to pay too much can't help being risky
    • speculative business enterprises
  11. adjective satellite physically unsound or diseased
    unsound; unfit.
    • has a bad back
    • a bad heart
    • bad teeth
    • an unsound limb
    • unsound teeth
  12. adjective satellite capable of harming
    • bad air
    • smoking is bad for you
  13. adjective satellite characterized by wickedness or immorality
    • led a very bad life
  14. adjective satellite reproduced fraudulently
    forged.
    • like a bad penny...
    • a forged twenty dollar bill
  15. adjective satellite not working properly
    defective.
    • a bad telephone connection
    • a defective appliance
  16. adverb with great intensity (`bad' is a nonstandard variant for `badly')
    badly.
    • the injury hurt badly
    • the buildings were badly shaken
    • it hurts bad
    • we need water bad
  17. adverb very much; strongly
    badly.
    • I wanted it badly enough to work hard for it
    • the cables had sagged badly
    • they were badly in need of help
    • he wants a bicycle so bad he can taste it

WordNet


Bad imperfect
Definitions
  1. of Bid. Bade. Obs. Dryden.
Bad adjective
Etymology
Probably fr. AS. bæddel hermaphrodite; cf. bædling effeminate fellow.
Wordforms
comparative Worse ; superlative Worst
Definitions
  1. Wanting good qualities, whether physical or moral; injurious, hurtful, inconvenient, offensive, painful, unfavorable, or defective, either physically or morally; evil; vicious; wicked; -- the opposite of good; as a bad man; bad conduct; bad habits; bad soil; bad health; bad crop; bad news. Sometimes used substantively.
    The strong antipathy of good to bad. Pope.
    Syn. -- Pernicious; deleterious; noxious; baneful; injurious; hurtful; evil; vile; wretched; corrupt; wicked; vicious; imperfect.

Webster 1913