Meanings
prepositional phrase
- Doing badly; in a state of ill health or misfortune.
We have seen that the Delhi empire was in a pretty bad way. Indeed, one could almost say that, as an empire, it was in no way at all.
1934-5, Jawaharlal Nehru, Glimpses of World History, Penguin (2004), p. 372
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivefacing or experiencing financial trouble or difficulty
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Cite this entry
APA
in a bad way. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20a%20bad%20way
MLA
“in a bad way.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20a%20bad%20way. Accessed November 5, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “in a bad way,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/in%20a%20bad%20way.
Source: in a bad way on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.