: arousing or deserving hatred or repugnance : hateful
an odious crime
a false and odious comparison
odiously
adverb
odiousness
noun
Examples of odious in a Sentence
Two of them—his mother Livia and his odious sister Janice—were at heart killers like himself.
—
Geoffrey O'Brien, New York Review of Books, 16 Aug. 2007
He learned an important lesson some years ago in Panama. Manuel Antonio Noriega was too odious even for Carter, who shunned the Panamanian strongman in the run-up to the 1989 ballot there.
—Jim Wooten, New York Times Magazine, 29 Jan 1995
But, alas, I know the real me, the me with the soft, round stomach and the love handles, odious first cousins to the paunch.
—Jack McCallum, Sports Illustrated, 30 July 1990
It was one of the most odious crimes of recent history.
an odious and unforgivable insult
Geoffrey O'Brien, New York Review of Books, 16 Aug. 2007
He learned an important lesson some years ago in Panama. Manuel Antonio Noriega was too odious even for Carter, who shunned the Panamanian strongman in the run-up to the 1989 ballot there.
—Jim Wooten, New York Times Magazine, 29 Jan 1995
But, alas, I know the real me, the me with the soft, round stomach and the love handles, odious first cousins to the paunch.
—Jack McCallum, Sports Illustrated, 30 July 1990
It was one of the most odious crimes of recent history.
an odious and unforgivable insult
Recent Examples on the Web
Using the odious term of genocide does nothing to help what’s going on in the Middle East.
—
Voice Of The People,
New York Daily News,
28 June 2026
An actually difficult person would ask for a seafood extravaganza and then complain that all there is to eat is … seafood (and that odious food group, vegetables).
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
That means a lot of time to fill, which has led to some rather odious personalities dominating ratings, as well as ridiculous roundtable food fights and straw-man arguments.
—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
6 May 2026
The film’s most odious villain is Orde Wingate (Robert Aramayo), a British Army captain and Christian Zionist who leads the brutal crackdowns on Palestinian villages.
—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
20 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for odious
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Voice Of The People,
New York Daily News,
28 June 2026
An actually difficult person would ask for a seafood extravaganza and then complain that all there is to eat is … seafood (and that odious food group, vegetables).
—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
That means a lot of time to fill, which has led to some rather odious personalities dominating ratings, as well as ridiculous roundtable food fights and straw-man arguments.
—
Bill Goodykoontz,
AZCentral.com,
6 May 2026
The film’s most odious villain is Orde Wingate (Robert Aramayo), a British Army captain and Christian Zionist who leads the brutal crackdowns on Palestinian villages.
—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
20 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for odious
Cite this Entry
“Odious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/odious. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
odious
adjective
odi·ous
ˈōd-ē-əs 
: causing hatred or strong dislike : worthy of hatred
odiously
adverb
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