English · Word Candidate

terrible

/ˈtɛɹəbəl/

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Also seen as: terribler · terriblest

Sense 1

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Dreadful; causing terror, alarm and fear; awesome

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Gây sợ hãi, kinh hoàng

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

The witch laid a terrible curse on him.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 2

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Formidable, powerful.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Hùng mạnh, đáng sợ

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Adjective

Examples

[…]and there was even a party of the younger men who pretended to admire him, calling him a "true sea-dog," and "real old salt," and such-like names, and saying there was the sort of man that made England terrible at sea.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Sense 3

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

In a terrible way; to a terrible extent; terribly; awfully.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

Một cách khủng khiếp

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

AdverbRegister: colloquial

Examples

‘Oh, terrible bad, sir, terrible deep the snow is,’ said the hedgehog.

Usage example from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01)

Sources & notes

Adapted from English Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0, retrieved 2026-08-01 via kaikki.org).

Common questions

What does “terrible” mean?

Dreadful; causing terror, alarm and fear; awesome

Is “terrible” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.