awful

Universal Words adjective, adverb adjective 1 (especially spoken) very bad or unpleasant: That's an awful colour. * 'They didn't even offer to pay.' 'Oh that's awful.' * It's awful, isn't it? * The weather last summer was awful. * I feel awful about forgetting her birthday. * to look / feel awful (= to look / feel ill) * There's an awful smell in here. * The awful thing is, it was my fault. 2 (especially spoken) used to emphasize sth, especially that there is a large amount or too much of sth: It's going to cost an awful lot of money. * There's not an awful lot of room. * I feel an awful lot better than I did yesterday. * (BrE) I had an awful job persuading him to come (= it was very difficult). 3 very shocking SYNTERRIBLE: the awful horrors of war awfulness noun [U]: the sheer awfulness of the situation adverb (informal, especially AmE) very; extremely: Clint is awful smart.