Word Study
awful
CIDE DICTIONARY
awful, a.
- Oppressing with fear or horror; appalling; terrible; as, an awful scene. Hemans. [1913 Webster]
- Inspiring awe; filling with profound reverence, or with fear and admiration; fitted to inspire reverential fear; profoundly impressive. [1913 Webster]"Heaven's awful Monarch." [1913 Webster]
- Struck or filled with awe; terror-stricken. [1913 Webster]"A weak and awful reverence for antiquity." [1913 Webster]
- Worshipful; reverential; law-abiding. [1913 Webster]"Thrust from the company of awful men." [1913 Webster]
- Frightful; exceedingly bad; great; -- applied intensively; as, an awful bonnet; an awful boaster. [1913 Webster]
Syn. -- See Frightful.
OXFORD DICTIONARY
awful, adj.
1 colloq. a unpleasant or horrible (awful weather). b poor in quality; very bad (has awful writing). c (attrib.) excessive; large ( an awful lot of money).
2 poet. inspiring awe.
1 colloq. a unpleasant or horrible (awful weather). b poor in quality; very bad (has awful writing). c (attrib.) excessive; large ( an awful lot of money).
2 poet. inspiring awe.
Derivative
awfulness n.
Etymology
AWE + -FUL
THESAURUS
awful
Babylonian, Corinthian, abominable, appalling, arrant, astounding, atrocious, august, awe-inspiring, awesome, awfully, awing, bad, baneful, barbaric, base, beastly, beneath contempt, big, bizarre, blameworthy, brutal, contemptible, crazy, damned, deadly, deluxe, deplorable, despicable, detestable, dire, direful, disgusting, divine, dread, dreaded, dreadful, eerie, egregious, elaborate, elegant, enormous, estimable, execrable, extravagant, extremely, fancy, fearful, fell, fetid, filthy, fine, flagrant, forbidding, formidable, foul, frightful, fulsome, ghastly, ghoulish, glorious, grand, grandiose, grave, greatly, grievous, grim, grisly, gross, grotesque, gruesome, hateful, heavenly, heinous, hideous, holy, honorable, horrendous, horrible, horrid, horrific, horrifying, howling, hugely, imposing, impressive, ineffable, inenarrable, inexpressible, infamous, inferior, inviolable, inviolate, lamentable, loathsome, lousy, luxurious, macabre, magnificent, majestic, monstrous, morbid, mortally, moving, much, mysterious, nasty, nefarious, noble, noisome, notorious, numinous, obnoxious, odious, offensive, ominous, outrageous, palatial, pitiable, pitiful, plush, portentous, posh, princely, proud, rank, redoubtable, regrettable, religious, repelling, reprehensible, repugnant, repulsive, reverend, revolting, ritzy, rotten, rousing, sacred, sacrosanct, sad, scandalous, schlock, schrecklich, scurvy, serious, shabby, shameful, shocking, shoddy, solemn, sordid, spiritual, splendacious, splendid, splendiferous, squalid, stately, sumptuous, superb, superfancy, superfine, swank, swanky, swell, tasteless, terrible, terribly, terrific, thumping, time-honored, too bad, tragic, tremendous, ugly, uncanny, unclean, unpleasant, unsightly, unspeakable, untouchable, unutterable, venerable, vile, villainous, weird, whacking, whopping, woeful, worshipful, worst, worthless, wretchedROGET THESAURUS
awful
Fear
N fear, timidity, diffidence, want of confidence, apprehensiveness, fearfulness, solicitude, anxiety, care, apprehension, misgiving, feeze, mistrust, suspicion, qualm, hesitation, nervousness, restlessness, inquietude, disquietude, worry, concern, batophobia, heartquake, flutter, trepidation, fear and trembling, perturbation, tremor, quivering, shaking, trembling, throbbing heart, palpitation, ague fit, cold sweat, abject fear, mortal funk, heartsinking, despondency, despair, fright, affright, affrightment, boof alarm, dread, awe, terror, horror, dismay, consternation, panic, scare, stampede (of horses), intimidation, terrorism, reign of terror, bug bear, bugaboo, scarecrow, hobgoblin, nightmare, Gorgon, mormo, ogre, Hurlothrumbo, raw head and bloody bones, fee-faw-fum, bete noire, enfant terrible, alarmist, fearing, frightened, in fear, in a fright, haunted with the fear of, afeard, afraid, fearful, timid, timorous, nervous, diffident, coy, faint- hearted, tremulous, shaky, afraid of one's shadow, apprehensive, restless, fidgety, more frightened than hurt, aghast, awe-stricken, horror-stricken, terror-stricken, panic- stricken, awestruck, awe-stricken, horror-struck, frightened to death, white as a sheet, pale, pale as a ghost, pale as death, pale as ashes, breathless, in hysterics, inspiring fear, alarming, formidable, redoubtable, perilous, portentous, fearful, dread, dreadful, fell, dire, direful, shocking, terrible, terrific, tremendous, horrid, horrible, horrific, ghastly, awful, awe-inspiring, revolting, Gorgonian, in terrorem, Int, angels and ministers of grace defend us!, ante tubam trepidat, horresco referens, one's heart failing one, obstupui steteruntque comae et vox faucibus haesit, a dagger of the mind, expertus metuit, fain would I climb but that I fear to fall, fear is the parent of cruelty, Gorgons and hydras and chimeras dire, omnia tuta timens, our fears do make us traitors.Silence
N silence, stillness, peace, hush, lull, muteness, solemn silence, awful silence, dead silence, deathlike silence, silent, still, stilly, noiseless, soundless, hushed, mute, soft, solemn, awful, deathlike, silent as the grave, inaudible, silently, sub silentio, Int, hush!, silence!, soft!, whist!, tush!, chut!, tut!, pax!, be quiet!, be silent!, be still!, shut up!, chup!, chup rao!, tace!, one might hear a feather drop, one might hear a pin drop, so quiet you could hear a pin drop, grosse Seelen dulden still, le silence est la vertu de ceux qui ne sont pas sa, le silence est le parti le plus sar de celui se d_, silence more musical than any song, tacent satis laudant, better to be silent and thought a fool than to spe.For further exploring for "awful" in Webster Dictionary Online