awful

Meaning

Adj

1. Very bad.
2. Exceedingly great; usually applied intensively.
3. (dated) Causing fear or horror; appalling, terrible.
4. (archaic) Awe-inspiring; filling with profound reverence or respect; profoundly impressive.
5. (archaic) Struck or filled with awe or reverence.
6. (obsolete) Terror-stricken.

Adv

1. (colloquial, not-comparable) Awfully; dreadfully; terribly.
2. (Canada, US, colloquial, not-comparable) Very, extremely.

Synonyms

terrible

horrible

dreadful

frightful

abominable

hideous

ghastly

gruesome

abhorrent

nasty

fearful

😨

atrocious

loathsome

vile

detestable

dire

accursed

horrendous

frightening

bad

👎

terrific

fearsome

formidable

dreaded

appalling

awe-inspiring

alien

👽

beastly

horrific

tremendous

horrid

terrifying

amazing

grisly

dread

foul

direful

very bad

awing

awesome

odious

repulsive

scary

cruel

majestic

god-awful

monstrous

serious

dismal

intolerable

Translations

horrible

orribile

terrible

terribile

orrendo

ijselijk

terrible

afschuwelijk

horroroso

afgrijselijk

atrox

abominável

aversabilis

verfoeilijk

schrecklich

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ˈɔːfʊl/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: agheful

Cognate with Old English: eġeful

In summary

From Middle English agheful, awfull, auful, aȝefull, equivalent to awe + -ful. Compare Old English eġeful, eġefull (“terrifying; awful”).
The “very bad” sense is a pejorative semantic shift from the original sense of “awe-inspiring”.