badness
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bad 1
(băd)adj. worse (wûrs), worst (wûrst)
1. Not achieving an adequate standard; poor: a bad concert.
2. Immoral or evil.
3. Vulgar or obscene: bad language.
4. Disobedient or naughty: bad children.
5. Disagreeable, unpleasant, or disturbing: a bad piece of news.
6. Unfavorable: bad reviews for the play.
7. Not fresh; rotten or spoiled: bad meat.
8. Injurious in effect; detrimental: bad habits.
9. Not working properly; defective: a bad telephone connection.
10. Full of or exhibiting faults or errors: bad grammar.
11. Having no validity; void: passed bad checks.
12. Being so far behind in repayment as to be considered a loss: bad loans.
13. Severe; intense: a bad cold.
14.
a. Being in poor health or in pain: I feel bad today.
b. Being in poor condition; diseased: bad lungs.
15. Sorry; regretful: She feels bad about how she treated you.
16. bad·der, bad·dest Slang Very good; great.
n.
Something that is below standard or expectations, as of ethics or decency: weighing the good against the bad.
adv. Usage Problem
Idioms: Badly.
in bad Informal
In trouble or disfavor.
my bad Slang
Used to acknowledge that one is at fault.
not half/so bad Informal
Reasonably good.
that's too bad
1. Used to express sadness or sympathy.
2. Used in response to a protest or complaint to express insistence that the speaker's expectation be met.
[Middle English badde, perhaps from shortening of Old English bæddel, hermaphrodite, effeminate or homosexual male.]
bad′ness n.
Usage Note: Bad is often used as an adverb in sentences such as His tooth ached so bad he could not sleep. This usage is common in informal speech but is widely regarded as unacceptable in formal writing. In our 2009 survey, 72 percent of the Usage Panel rejected the sentence just quoted. · The use of badly with want and need was once considered incorrect, since in these cases it means "very much" rather than "in an inferior manner or condition" or "immorally." But this use is widespread, even in formal contexts, and is now considered standard. · The adverb badly is often used after verbs such as feel, as in I felt badly about the whole affair. This usage bears analogy to the use of other adverbs with feel, such as strongly in We feel strongly about this issue. Some people prefer to maintain a distinction between feel badly and feel bad, restricting the former to emotional distress and using the latter to cover physical ailments; however, this distinction is not universally observed, so feel badly should be used in a context that makes its meaning clear. · Badly is used in some regions to mean "unwell," as in He was looking badly after the accident. Poorly is also used in this way. · Note that badly is required following look when it modifies another word or phrase in the predicate, as in The motorcycle looked badly in need of repair.
Our Living Language Many people might have the impression that the slang usage of bad to mean its opposite, "excellent," is a recent innovation of African American Vernacular English. While the usage is of African American origin and parallels to it are found in language use throughout the Caribbean, the "good" use of bad has been recorded for over a century. The first known example dates from 1897. Even earlier, beginning in the 1850s, the word appears in the sense "formidable, very tough," as applied to persons. Whether or not the two usages are related, they both illustrate a favorite creative device of informal and slang language—using a word to mean the opposite of what it "really" means. This is by no means uncommon; people use words sarcastically to mean the opposite of their actual meanings on a daily basis. What is more unusual is for such a usage to be generally accepted within a larger community. Perhaps when the concepts are as basic as "good" and "bad" this general acceptance is made easier. A similar instance is the word uptight, which in the 1960s enjoyed usage in the sense "excellent" alongside its now-current, negative meaning of "tense."
bad 2
(băd)v. Archaic
A past tense of bid.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
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Noun | 1. | ![]() quality - an essential and distinguishing attribute of something or someone; "the quality of mercy is not strained"--Shakespeare unworthiness - the quality or state of lacking merit or value undesirability - the quality possessed by something that should be avoided worse - something inferior in quality or condition or effect; "for better or for worse"; "accused of cheating and lying and worse" evil - that which causes harm or destruction or misfortune; "the evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones"- Shakespeare unsoundness - not mentally or physically healthy; "no one can be a poet without a certain unsoundness of mind" liability - the quality of being something that holds you back inadvisability - the quality of being ill-advised |
2. | ![]() intensiveness, intensity - high level or degree; the property of being intense raininess, foulness - (of weather) the badness of the weather; "they were wearied with the foulness of the weather" distressfulness, seriousness - the quality of arousing fear or distress; "he learned the seriousness of his illness" | |
3. | ![]() disobedience - the trait of being unwilling to obey |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
badness
noun wickedness, wrong, evil, corruption, sin, impropriety, immorality, villainy, naughtiness, sinfulness, foulness, baseness, rottenness, vileness, shamefulness They only recognize badness when they perceive it in others.
good, virtue, excellence, goodness, morality, righteousness, rectitude, uprightness
good, virtue, excellence, goodness, morality, righteousness, rectitude, uprightness
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
badness
nounThe American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005
bad
(bӕd) – comparative worse (wəːs) : superlative worst (wəːst) – adjective1. not good; not efficient. He is a bad driver; His eyesight is bad; They are bad at tennis (= they play tennis badly).malo
3. unpleasant. bad news.malo
5. causing harm or injury. Smoking is bad for your health.malo, perjudicial, nocivo, pernicioso
6. (of a part of the body) painful, or in a weak state. She has a bad heart; I have a bad head (= headache) today. que duele; enfermo
7. unwell. I am feeling quite bad today.mal
9. (of a debt) not likely to be paid. The firm loses money every year from bad debts.incobrable
ˈbadly – comparative worse: superlative worst - adverb1. not well, efficiently or satisfactorily. He plays tennis very badly.mal
2. to a serious or severe extent. He badly needs a haircut; The dress is badly stained. seriamente, desesperadamente; muy
ˈbadness nounbadly off not having much especially money. We can't go on holiday – we are too badly off. andar mal de dinero, estar en un período de escasez/de vacas flacas
feel bad (about something) to feel upset or ashamed about something. I feel bad about forgetting to telephone you. sentirse mal, sentir vergüenza, tener remordimientos
go from bad to worse to get into an even worse condition etc than before. Things are going from bad to worse for the firm – not only are we losing money but there's going to be a strike as well. ir de mal en peor
not bad quite good. `Is she a good swimmer?' `She's not bad.'nada mal
too bad unfortunate. It's too bad that he has left.pena
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