bad

comparative worse · comparative nonstandard badder · comparative nonstandard more bad · superlative worst · nonstandard superlative baddest · nonstandard superlative most bad

1. Of low quality.

   That movie was really bad!

   Synonyms: cruddy, lousy, shoddy, ass, base, below par, bottom-shelf, BTEC

2. Inaccurate; incorrect

   A bad guess.

   2 more examples

   This sentence has bad grammar!

   He speaks bad German!

3. Unfavorable; negative; not good.

   He is in a bad mood.

   4 more examples

   Hiring practice is very bad in this company.

   The weather looks pretty bad right now.

   You have very bad grades.

   He looked round the poor room, at the distempered walls, and the bad engravings in meretricious frames, the crinkly paper and wax flowers on the chiffonier; and he thought of a room like Father Bryan's, with panelling, with cut glass, with tulips in silver pots, such a room as he had hoped to have for his own.

   1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter X, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC

   Synonyms: unfavorable, negative

4. Not suitable or fitting.

   Do you think it is a bad idea to confront him directly?

   Synonyms: inappropriate, unfit, discommensurate, improper, inappropriate, malapropos, inapt, incommensurate

5. Not appropriate, of manners etc.

   It is bad manners to talk with your mouth full.

   1 more example

   “[…] if you call my duds a ‘livery’ again there'll be trouble. It's bad enough to go around togged out like a life saver on a drill day, but I can stand that 'cause I'm paid for it. What I won't stand is to have them togs called a livery. […]”

   1913, Joseph C[rosby] Lincoln, chapter VII, in Mr. Pratt’s Patients, New York, N.Y.; London: D[aniel] Appleton and Company, →OCLC

6. Harmful, especially unhealthy; liable to cause health problems.

   Lard is bad for you. Smoking is bad for you, too. Grapes are bad for dogs but not for humans.

   Synonyms: unhealthful, unwholesome, harmful, damaging, deleterious, detrimental, hurtful, inimical

7. chiefly applied to a person's state of healthSickly, unhealthy, unwell.

   I've had a bad back since the accident.

   2 more examples

   Joe's in a bad way; he can't even get out of bed.

   I went to the hospital to see how my grandfather was doing. Unfortunately, he's in a bad state.

   Synonyms: ill, poorly, sickly, ailing, crank, crook, green about the gills, icky

8. The injured or weak one of a pair of body parts, where the other one is healthy.

   I accidentally put my weight on my bad leg and fell over.

9. childishoftenNot behaving; behaving badly; misbehaving; mischievous or disobedient.

   Stop being bad, or you will get a spanking!

   1 more example

   I can tell that new kid at our daycare is trouble […] He's picking out his favorite corner to stand in when he's bad.

   2014 August 28, Tom Armstrong, Marvin (comic)

10. Tricky; stressful; unpleasant.

    Divorce is usually a bad experience for everybody involved.

    Synonyms: foul, loathsome, abhorrant, abhorrent, sickly, mean, infernal, bum

11. childishsometimesEvil; wicked.

    Be careful. There are bad people in the world.

    Synonyms: vile, vicious, abandoned, arrant, bad apple, bad seed, baleful, scurrilous

12. Faulty; not functional.

    I had a bad headlight.

    Synonyms: inoperative, borked, broken, broken-down, bum, bung, busted, cactused

13. Spoiled, rotten, overripe.

    These apples have gone bad.

    Synonyms: rotten, gone bad, gone off, maggoted, rotten, spoiled

14. Malodorous; foul.

    Bad breath is not pleasant for anyone.

    Synonyms: buckish, cacodorous, fetid, foul-smelling, funky, graveolent, malodorous, mawkish

15. False; counterfeit; illegitimate.

    They were caught trying to pass bad coinage.

    Synonyms: fake, spurious, artificial, bogus, bollocks, concocted, counterfeit, ersatz

16. Unskilled; of limited ability; not good.

    I'm pretty bad at speaking French.

    1 more example

    He's a bad gardener; everything he tries to grow ends up dying.

    Synonyms: bungling, inept, amateurish, backwards, bungling, clumsy, ham-fisted, ham-handed

17. Of poor physical appearance.

    I have such bad skin!

    2 more examples

    I look really bad whenever I get less than seven hours of sleep.

    I don't look bad in this dress, do I?

    Synonyms: repulsive, unsightly, brendan, beat, butters, butt-ugly, clapped, coyote ugly

18. want; or pain; want; or painSevere, urgent.

    He is in bad need of a haircut.

    1 more example

    Oh let me tell you that it / Hurts so bad / It makes me feel so sad / You make it hurt so bad / To see you again.

    1965, Teddy Randazzo, Bobby Weinstein, Bobby Hart, “Hurt So Bad”, in Hurt So Bad, performed by The Lettermen

    Synonyms: dire, acute, clamant, crying, dire, sore, exigent, imperious

19. preceded by feelRegretful, guilty, or ashamed.

    I feel so bad for betraying him!

20. speechcommunicationsVulgar, obscene, or blasphemous.

    Don't you dare speak to me with that bad language!

21. Not worth it.

    The expensive purse was a bad buy.

22. computingCausing a problem rendering the current task impossible.

    Bad device, could not connect.

1. informalnot comparableNot covered by funds on account.

   He gave me a bad check.

   Synonyms: rubber, hot

comparative badder · comparative more bad · superlative baddest · superlative most bad

1. slangBold, daring, and tough.

   He's the baddest guy in town!

   Synonyms: badass, adventurous, mettlesome, aweless, bold, brass-balled, chivalrous, courageous

2. slangsemantic changeGood, superlative, excellent, cool.

   You is bad, man!

   3 more examples

   Man, that new car you bought is bad!

   He's the big bad wolf in your neighborhood / not bad meaning bad, but bad meaning good

   1986, Darryl McDaniels, Joseph Simmons, “Peter Piper”, in Raising Hell, performed by Run-DMC

   Man, that bitch was bad—it was the best piece of pussy that I ever had.

   1994, “Best Ever” (track 7), in N2Deep (lyrics), 24-7-365

   Synonyms: acceptable, agreeable, all right, amazing, as fine as Dick's hatband, awesome, beatific, bene

3. USslangOverly promiscuous, licentious.

   You leave your girl around me; if she's bad she's gonna get stuck.

   2005, “Stay Fly”, in Jordan Houston, Darnell Carlton, Paul Beauregard, Premro Smith, Marlon Goodwin, David Brown, Willie Hutchinson (lyrics), Most Known Unknown, performed by Three 6 Mafia (featuring Young Buck, 8 Ball, and MJG), Sony BMG

   Synonyms: abandoned, common, easy, fast, lascivious, lewd, liberal, libidinous

4. slangVery attractive; hot, sexy.

   Hopefully I can pull some bad bitches tonight.

5. slang"bad girl"; and similar phrases; "bad girl"; and similar phrasesAttractive due to (one's) rebellious nature.

   She's the baddest girl!

   1 more example

   That boy is the baddest!

comparative worse · superlative worst

1. colloquialslangflat adverbBadly; poorly.

   I didn't do too bad in the last exam.

   2 more examples

   He is quite bad off now that both his parents lost their jobs.

   The sacked quarterback was hurting bad. His back ached so bad that he had to lie down.

   Antonyms: good, well

2. emphaticintensifierslangBadly; severely, extremely, passionately, eagerly.

   Please come back, baby. I miss you so bad!

   1 more example

   I want you / I want you so bad, it's driving me mad

   1969, Lennon–McCartney, “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”, in Abbey Road, performed by The Beatles

plural bads

1. countableslanguncountableSomething that is bad; a harm or evil.

   We idealize God as supergoodness in order to protect against a bad that we cannot unite with ourselves.

   2001, Ann Belford Ulanov, Finding Space: Winnicott, God, and Psychic Reality, page 59

2. countableslanguncountableError; mistake.

   "My bad, My bad!” Juwan yelled, scowling

   1993, Mitch Albom, Fab five: basketball, trash talk, the American dream

   2 more examples

   “Chico, you're late again.” I turned around and stared him in his beady eyes. “I missed my bus. My bad, Donald.” “Your bad? Your bad? What kind of English is that?

   2003, Zane, Skyscraper, page 7

   Teresa broke out in laughter. “Dang, I sound like I'm talking to my man.” “I tried your cell phone, but you didn't answer.” “I left it at home, Friday. My bad.” “Yeah, your bad.” I laughed. “Really, I'm sorry. It won't happen again.

   2008, Camika Spencer, Cubicles, page 68

3. countableslanguncountableeconomicsAn item (or kind of item) of merchandise with negative value; an unwanted good.

   Imports are an economic good but exports an economic bad. Exports must be produced but are enjoyed by foreign consumers.

   2011, Henry Thompson, International Economics: Global Markets and Competition, 3rd edition, World Scientific, page 97

   1 more example

   An economic bad is anything that you would pay to get rid of. It is not so hard to think of examples of bads: pollution, garbage, and disease fit the description.

   2011, William J. Boyes, Michael Melvin, Economics, 9th edition, Cengage Learning, page 4

1. slangUsed to scold a misbehaving child or pet.

   Bad! You know you're not allowed in the kitchen after dinner.

1. alternativearchaicpastslangalternative past of bid. See bade.

present singular third person bads · participle present badding · participle past badded · past badded

1. UKdialectalslangtransitiveTo shell (a walnut).

   1 more example

   A curious specimen of Gloucestershire dialect came out in an assault case heard by the Gloucester court magistrates on Saturday. One of the witnesses, speaking of what a girl was doing at the time the assault took place, said she was ‘badding’ walnuts in a pigstye. The word is peculiarly provincial: to ‘bad’ walnuts is to strip away the husk. The walnut, too, is often called a ‘bannut,’ and hence the old Gloucestershire phrase, ‘Come an’ bad the bannuts.’

   1876, The Gloucester Journal, Oct. 7, 1876, reported in A. Gregory, “Gloucestershire Dialect,” Notes and Queries, 5th ser., 6, 148 (1876‑10‑28): 346