as in horrific
extremely disturbing or repellent
a photographic exhibit of nightmarish images from the wars of the 20th century
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nightmarish
Adjective
-
This is what Qasem Hassan had feared from the start—that the horrific violence inflicted on Israelis on October 7th would be used to justify a war without limits, dehumanizing all Palestinians.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025 -
That this horrific upheaval comes care of Lucy’s work is the real kicker.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
9 June 2025
Adjective
-
Six decades later, Hamas would engage in a gruesome competition with Fatah to outdo one another with terrorist attacks during the 1990s and early 2000s.—
Sean Durns,
The Washington Examiner,
6 June 2025
-
But Trump and Epstein’s association has been out in the open for nearly a quarter century; nineties-era footage of the gruesome twosome together at Mar-a-Lago, leering at a group of young cheerleaders, has been circulating since at least 2019.—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
6 June 2025
Adjective
-
But then what looked like a tap-in par on the long par-three eighth turned into a shocking miss.—
Doug Ferguson,
Los Angeles Times,
15 June 2025
-
The team grapples with a leadership shakeup and a shocking ultimatum.—
Billie Melissa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 June 2025
Adjective
-
Even with the horrible start the Red Sox still nearly came all the way back, twice drawing to within one run, but the club couldn’t get over the hump.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
3 June 2025
-
Even on a horrible team, someone has to score, get rebounds and assists.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
2 June 2025
Adjective
-
And these are the same Oilers who, after a terrible 6-1 loss in Game 3 to the Panthers, overcame a three-goal deficit in Game 4 to even the series.—
Daniel Nugent-Bowman,
New York Times,
15 June 2025
-
Outside of getting to play a grand slam event in his backyard, Thomas has been downright terrible in the sport's four biggest tournaments.—
Gerrit Ritt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 June 2025
Adjective
-
How to check food labels for allergies Howard's story is frightening and not entirely uncommon.—
Adrianna Rodriguez,
USA Today,
12 June 2025
-
The frightening incident unfolded aboard Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas cruise ship on June 8.—
Soo Kim,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 June 2025
Adjective
-
More: Ukraine drone attack shows familiar-looking drones can be terrifying weapons How does the Pentagon, which spends nearly a trillion dollars a year on defense, have such a vulnerability?—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
-
An apocalyptic wasteland ruled by savage bands of outlaws or a horny computer dork's bedroom — which is more terrifying?—
Jordan Hoffman,
EW.com,
6 June 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Nightmarish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nightmarish. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share