wicked
- 1Evil or mischievous by nature, or morally wrong in a way that deserves condemnation.
The novel's wicked stepfather schemes to steal the children's inheritance.
She called it the wickedest thing she had ever seen a grown man do to a child.
UsageA common pattern is it was wicked of someone to do something. Both wickeder and more wicked are used.
Similarevil, immoral, malicious, villainous, depraved
Oppositegood, virtuous, righteous, moral
Note
The -ed here is no past tense: Middle English had wikke, "evil", and wicked is an altered form of it, of uncertain origin. Older English also uses the wicked as a noun for wicked people, as in the 1611 Bible's "The wicked flee when no man pursueth."
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 6 facts
- The ending in this sense is not a past-tense inflection. en.wiktionary.org
- Middle English wikke meant evil. en.wiktionary.org
- Wicked developed by alteration of wikke. en.wiktionary.org
- The word's ultimate origin is uncertain. en.wiktionary.org
- Historical English used the wicked collectively for wicked people, as illustrated by the quoted biblical wording in Proverbs 28:1. en.wikisource.org
- The King James Bible was first published in 1611. neh.gov
- 2Excellent, awesome, or impressively skillful.
The drummer pulled off a wicked fill right before the final chorus.
She's got a wicked sense of style, all vintage leather and bright sneakers.
UsageBefore a noun or after be: a wicked solo, That was wicked! Excellent suits formal writing.
Similarawesome, excellent, cool, brilliant, ace
Note
Slang turns the word for evil into praise, the same reversal that lets bad mean good. It suits performances, skills and things that impress, and the noun beside it usually settles the meaning: a wicked guitar solo cannot be evil.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
- The approving sense developed through an ameliorative shift from the evil sense. en.wiktionary.org
- Bad likewise has an approving sense resulting from amelioration. en.wiktionary.org
- 3To a very high degree; very or extremely.
The line at the clam shack was wicked long, but the chowder was worth it.
James: It looks like you're wearing earrings also. Those are really something. Those aren't too heavy, are they? / Sonia: No, they're actually, like, wicked light.
2025, Love On the Spectrum, season 3UsageGoes straight before an adjective: wicked smart, wicked cold, wicked good.
Similarvery, extremely, exceedingly
Note
Today the adverb is best known as Boston slang, placed straight before an adjective: wicked loud, wicked light, wicked expressive. The same use is archaic in Lancashire and in Scotland, so outside Boston talk it can sound either regional or old-fashioned.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- The intensifying adverb is archaic in Lancashire and Scotland. en.wiktionary.org
- 4Harsh or severe, as a biting wind or a bad storm can be.
A wicked frost overnight killed half the tomato plants.
The flu left him with a wicked cough that lasted for weeks.
UsageCommon with weather, pain and illness: a wicked frost, a wicked cough, a wicked headache.
Less common meanings
- 5Simple past and past participle of wick.
The cotton strip wicked water up from the saucer into the dry soil of the pot.
Moisture had wicked up through the brick, staining the plaster a foot above the floor.
UsageSaid as one syllable, rhyming with picked, unlike the two-syllable adjective. Often with away or up: wicked sweat away.
Note
In bowls, where a player's own bowl clips a stationary one just enough to glance off in a new direction, the past is wicked too.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- In bowls, a wick involves the played bowl touching a stationary bowl and changing direction; the verb's past form is wicked. en.wiktionary.org
- 6WIKT/wɪkt/Having a wick; mostly used in compounds that give the number or kind of wicks.
The shop sells triple-wicked candles that burn evenly across a wide jar.
A thin-wicked taper gives a small, steady flame.
- 7WIKT/wɪkt/Active and brisk.
Note
This old dialect adjective has nothing to do with the word for evil: it is a form of wick, and it has long dropped out of use in the UK.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
- The sense ‘active and brisk’ is an obsolete UK dialect adjective. en.wiktionary.org
- This sense belongs to wick, under a separate etymology from wicked meaning evil. en.wiktionary.org
- 8Infested with maggots.
Showing meanings only.
wicked is a form of wick
wick, verb: Of a fabric or other porous material, to draw liquid along or away by capillary action (fabrics that wick sweat from the skin); of a liquid, to move through such a material. Full entry
- Spelling
- wick → wicked: add -ed
- Sound
- The ending sounds like /ɪd/, an extra syllable.
Practice
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Origin
From Middle English wicked, wikked, an alteration of wicke, wikke ("morally perverse, evil"), of uncertain origin: possibly from Old English wiċċa ("wizard, sorcerer"), though the sounds make this hard to explain, or perhaps related to wicker, Old Norse víkja ("to bend, yield") and weak. The sense "excellent, awesome" is a later positive shift from "evil, mischievous", like the development of terrific and sick.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 7 facts
- Wicked derives from Middle English wicked or wikked, an alteration of wicke or wikke meaning morally perverse or evil. en.wiktionary.org
- The further origin is uncertain. en.wiktionary.org
- Derivation from Old English wiċċa, meaning wizard or sorcerer, is a proposed explanation with phonological difficulties. en.wiktionary.org
- A relationship with wicker, Old Norse víkja meaning to bend or yield, and weak is an alternative proposal. en.wiktionary.org
- The positive meaning excellent or awesome developed from the earlier negative meaning. en.wiktionary.org
- Terrific underwent a comparable positive semantic shift. en.wiktionary.org
- Sick underwent a comparable positive semantic shift. en.wiktionary.org