DictionaryAI

ugly

UG-lee/ˈʌɡli/

Adjectiveuglier, ugliest

Noun pluraluglies

9 meanings of ugly

Practice

  1. 1
    hideousadjective
    Not nice to look at. Also, not nice to hear or sense in some other way.

    Like a drawing that makes you want to look away.

    That ugly stain on the carpet won't come out.

    The old shed in the yard looked ugly and broken.

    UsageSay uglier and ugliest. Calling a person ugly is rude.

    Similarunattractive, hideous, unsightly, grotesque, repulsive

    Oppositebeautiful, attractive, pretty, handsome

    Note
  2. 2
    grim (situation)adjectivefiguratively
    Likely to cause trouble or harm, and bad in a worrying way.

    Like dark clouds that warn a storm is coming.

    The weather turned ugly just as we set off.

    Things could get ugly if the money runs out.

    UsageSay things turned ugly or got ugly.

    Similarnasty, dangerous, threatening, menacing, ominous

    Note
  3. 3
    morally shockingadjective
    Morally wrong or shocking in a way that upsets people.

    Cheating people out of their money is an ugly thing to do.

    He has an ugly habit of lying to his friends.

    Similarnasty, vile, repugnant, offensive, hateful

  4. 4
    homely onenounslangcountable or uncountable
    A person or thing seen as not nice to look at.

    In the cartoon, a gang of little uglies lives under the bridge and scares travelers.

    In the game, you fight one slimy green ugly after another.

    UsageUse it in jokes about cartoon characters; calling a real person an ugly is rude.

    Similareyesore

    Oppositebeauty, looker, stunner

  5. 5
    lack of beautynounslanguncountable
    The state of being unpleasant to look at.

    The movie showed both the good and the ugly of city life.

    There is a lot of ugly in this old part of town.

    UsageSay the ugly or a lot of ugly. In careful writing, say ugliness.

    Similarunpleasantness, nastiness

    Oppositebeauty

    Note
  6. 6
    aggressiveadjective
    Bad-tempered and quick to start a fight.

    The dog turned ugly when strangers came near.

    He gets ugly with people after a bad day.

    UsageSay he gets ugly with people.

    Similarnasty, mean, surly, belligerent, aggressive

    Oppositeplacid, amiable

    Note

Less common meanings

  1. 7
    make unattractiveverbnonstandardtransitive
    To make something not nice to look at.

    The new billboards really ugly up the highway.

    "Don't ugly up your nice jacket with all those patches," Mom said.

    UsageSay ugly up, as in don't ugly up the yard.

    Similardisfigure, mar, spoil, deface, blight

    Oppositebeautify, enhance

    Note
  2. 8
    noundatedUKcountable or uncountable
    A small shade attached to a bonnet to protect the face from the sun.

    Similarshade, visor

    Note
  3. 9
    nouncolloquial
    A product that is too big or oddly shaped to stack neatly on a pallet.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of ugly apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

It comes from an Old Norse word uggligr meaning "dreadful" or "horrible to look at," from uggr meaning "fear." Later it came to mean "unpleasant to look at."

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts