hideous

/ˈhɪdiəs/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈhɪdiəs/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈhi-dē-əs/ (ame, mw)

hideous — 形容詞

  • hideouspositive
  • more hideouscomparative
  • most hideoussuperlative

1. so ugly or unpleasant to see, hear, or experience that it makes you want to look

1.形容詞C1
釋義

醜陋的；難看

外觀醜得令人不想看

so ugly or unpleasant to see, hear, or experience that it makes you want to look or move away.

例句

Bilal pulled a hideous green sweater out of the box his aunt had mailed him.

Bilal 從阿姨寄來的箱子裡拉出一件醜得不得了的綠色毛衣。

attributive: a hideous + noun (clothing/object)

The old riverside factory looked hideous after fifty years of rust and broken windows.

那座河邊的舊工廠生鏽五十年又滿是破窗，看起來十分醜陋。

predicative: look + hideous

同義詞
  • ugly

    weaker, everyday word

  • grotesque

    ugly in a strange or distorted way

  • ghastly

    more about shock or pale horror than just ugliness

反義詞

用法筆記

Frequently attributive before a noun for objects, clothing, decor, or physical marks. Stronger than 'ugly' — implies the speaker finds it almost painful to look at.

常見錯誤

❌The soup tasted hideous.
✅The soup tasted awful.
💡'hideous' is mainly about sight, not flavour.

2. so cruel, wrong, or upsetting that it shocks people and makes them feel disgust

2.形容詞C1
釋義

駭人聽聞

行為殘忍或道德上令人震驚

so cruel, wrong, or upsetting that it shocks people and makes them feel disgust — used about acts, crimes, or events.

例句

The judge described the attack on the elderly couple as a hideous crime.

法官把這起攻擊年長夫婦的事件形容為一樁駭人聽聞的罪行。

collocation: hideous crime / act / atrocity

Folake could not believe her brother had told such a hideous lie about their grandmother.

Folake 不敢相信弟弟竟然編出這種可憎的謊話來中傷祖母。

同義詞
  • monstrous

    very evil, often more extreme

  • appalling

    shocking and morally upsetting; common in news

  • atrocious

    especially about war crimes or large-scale cruelty

反義詞

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1: this sense applies to behaviour, events, and statements (crimes, lies, acts, violence), not to physical appearance. Often paired with moral nouns like 'crime', 'act', 'truth', 'lie'.

常見錯誤

❌a hideous person' meaning evil.
✅a hideous crime' or 'a cruel person'.
💡for people, 'hideous' usually still suggests ugliness; use 'cruel' or 'monstrous' for moral judgement.