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Definition of horrific adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

horrific

adjective
 
/həˈrɪfɪk/
 
/həˈrɪfɪk/
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  1. extremely bad and making you feel shocked or frightened synonym horrifying
    • a horrific murder/accident/attack, etc.
    • Her injuries were horrific.
    • She’s been through a horrific ordeal.
    Extra Examples
    • Some of the scenes we witnessed were quite horrific.
    • There's been a horrific murder.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • look
    adverb
    • really
    • absolutely
    • quite
    • …
    See full entry
  2. (informal) very bad or unpleasant synonym horrendous
    • We had a horrific trip.
    Some speakers do not pronounce the ‘h’ at the beginning of horrific and use ‘an’ instead of ‘a’ before it. This now sounds old-fashioned.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • look
    adverb
    • really
    • absolutely
    • quite
    • …
    See full entry
    3. Word Originmid 17th cent.: from Latin horrificus, from horrere ‘tremble, shudder’.
See horrific in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Check pronunciation: horrific

Nearby words

trait
noun
 
 
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