bad
adjective /bæd/
/bæd/
(comparative worse
Idioms /wɜːs/
/wɜːrs/
, superlative worst /wɜːst/
/wɜːrst/
)- unpleasant; full of problems
- I have some bad news for you, I'm afraid.
- bad weather/dreams/habits
- I'm having a really bad day.
- It was the worst experience of her life.
- Smoking gives you bad breath.
- War is always a bad thing.
- That was just bad luck.
- Things are bad enough without our own guns shelling us.
Extra ExamplesTopics Weathera1- The picnic was cancelled due to bad weather.
- The weather got very bad later in the day.
- On the last day the weather turned bad.
- I'd rather not drive in such bad conditions.
- I'm afraid I've got some bad news.
- Sunbeds have received a lot of bad publicity in recent years. Are they safe?
- The situation couldn't get any worse.
- Things were bad enough without her interfering.
- Her husband had many bad habits, including gambling.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- look
- sound
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- at
- for
- not half bad
- of poor quality; below an acceptable standard
- I thought it was a very bad article.
- Bad diet and lack of exercise can lead to serious health problems.
- The movie wasn't as bad as I'd expected.
- That's not a bad idea.
Extra Examples- The service was laughably bad.
- I blame it on your bad driving.
- Inspectors are looking into the problem of bad prison conditions.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- look
- sound
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- at
- for
- not half bad
- serious; severe
- You're heading for a bad case of sunburn.
- The engagement was a bad mistake.
- My headache is getting worse.
- It was a very bad winter that year.
- [only before noun] not appropriate in a particular situation
- I know that this is a bad time to ask for help.
- He now realized that it had been a bad decision on his part.
- morally unacceptable
- The hero gets to shoot all the bad guys.
- He said I must have done something bad to deserve it.
- I will not tolerate this bad behaviour.
- That girl's a bad influence on Tom.
- [usually before noun] (especially of children) not behaving well synonym naughty
- Have you been a bad boy?
- (of a person) not able to do something well or in an acceptable way synonym poor
- a bad teacher
- You're a bad liar!
- He's a bad loser (= he complains when he loses a game).
- bad at (doing) something She is so bad at keeping secrets.
Extra Examples- He is particularly bad at remembering names.
- He's really bad at languages.
- Jim was a notoriously bad driver.
- I would be a really bad teacher—I've no patience.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- look
- sound
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- at
- for
- not half bad
- [not before noun] bad for somebody/something harmful; causing or likely to cause damage
- Those shoes are bad for her feet.
- Weather like this is bad for business.
- Too much work is bad for your health.
Extra Examples- Smoking is very bad for you.
- Watching television is not inherently bad for children.
- All those sugary drinks are bad for your teeth.
- Eating too much salt is bad for you.
- It's bad for you to eat too much salt.
- [usually before noun] (of parts of the body) not healthy; painful
- I've got a bad back.
- not safe to eat because it has decayed (= started to be destroyed by natural processes)
- Put the meat in the fridge so it doesn't go bad.
Extra Examples- The sausages tasted bad.
- This meat has gone bad.
- There was a smell of bad eggs.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- be
- look
- smell
- …
- bad temper/mood the state of feeling annoyed or angry
- It put me in a bad mood for the rest of the day.
- John's in a pretty bad mood this morning.
- feel bad to feel guilty or sorry about something
- She felt pretty bad about leaving him.
- Why should I want to make you feel bad?
- I feel bad enough without you constantly telling me how it was all my fault!
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs- feel
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- about
- feel/look bad to feel or look ill
- I'm afraid I'm feeling pretty bad.
Vocabulary Building Bad and very badBad and very badInstead of saying that something is bad or very bad, try to use more precise and interesting adjectives to describe things:Topics Illnessa2- an unpleasant/a foul/a disgusting smell
- appalling/dreadful/severe weather
- an unpleasant/a frightening/a traumatic experience
- poor/weak eyesight
- a terrible/serious/horrific accident
- a wicked/an evil/an immoral person
- an awkward/an embarrassing/a difficult situation
- We were working in difficult/appalling conditions.
- I feel unwell/sick/terrible.
- I don’t feel (very) well.
- (comparative badder, superlative baddest)(especially North American English, slang) good; excellentOxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
- be
- look
- sound
- …
- extremely
- fairly
- very
- …
- at
- for
- not half bad
unpleasant
poor quality
serious
not appropriate
wicked
children
not good at something
harmful
painful
food
temper/mood
guilty/sorry
ill/sick
excellent
Word OriginMiddle English: perhaps from Old English bǣddel ‘hermaphrodite, womanish man’.
Idioms Most idioms containing bad are at the entries for the nouns and verbs in the idioms, for example be bad news (for somebody/something) is at news.
can’t be bad
- (informal) used to try to persuade somebody to agree that something is good
- You'll save fifty dollars, which can't be bad, can it?
have got it bad
- (informal, humorous) to be very much in love
- You're not seeing him again tonight, are you? That's five times this week—you've got it bad!
not bad
- (informal) quite good; better than you expected
- ‘How are you?’ ‘Not too bad.’
- That wasn't bad for a first attempt.
too bad (informal)
- (ironic) used to say ‘bad luck’ or ‘it’s a shame’ when you do not really mean it
- If sometimes they're the wrong decisions, too bad.
- a shame; a pity
- Too bad every day can't be as good as this.
- (old-fashioned) annoying
- Really, it was too bad of you to be so late.