Synonyms for dire
- adjective
Most common
depressing bleak somber US disastrous calamitous urgent terrible desperate
Synonyms by meaning
Adjective
1. Grim — expressing bad consequences, dreadful; dismal
grim, bleak, unhappy, dismal, sad, gloomy, woeful, depressing, dark, somber US, sombre UK, glum, forlorn, doleful, desolate, dreary dated
2. Disastrous — warning of bad consequences, ill-boding; portentous
disastrous, calamitous, ominous, foreboding, portentous, fatal, baleful, sinister, ill-starred, star-crossed, ill-fated, boding, ill-boding, ill-omened, bodeful, ruinous, fateful
3. Urgent — requiring action to prevent bad consequences, urgent, pressing
urgent, severe, critical, acute, exigent, crying, sore, clamant, imperative, instant dated
4. Terrible — bad in quality, awful, terrible
terrible, dreadful, awful, horrible, horrendous, horrific, horrid, fearful, bad, frightening, shocking, atrocious, hideous, frightful, tremendous, gruesome, fearsome, lousy, unfavorable US, unfavourable UK, dreaded, direful, dread
Other
Definitions
- adj. 1
Warning of bad consequences: ill-boding; portentous.
- adj. 2
Requiring action to prevent bad consequences: urgent, pressing.
- adj. 3
Expressing bad consequences: dreadful; dismal.
dire consequences; to be in dire straits
- adj. 4
Bad in quality, awful, terrible.
His dire blunder allowed her to checkmate him with her next move.
Example sentences
- depressing Recently, you've been depressing to hang out with.
- bleak To some people, Algeria's future is looking bleak.
- somber We heard somber hollow sounds from the cave.
- disastrous This can have disastrous results for your career.
- urgent Being less urgent, this plan is lower in priority.
Popularity over time
| Word | 1850 → 2019 | Trend |
|---|---|---|
| dire | rising | |
| depressing | steady | |
| bleak | rising | |
| somber | rising | |
| disastrous | falling | |
| calamitous | steady |
Use in printed books, per decade from 1850 to 2019.
By length
- 3 letters
- bad1, sad1
- 4 letters
- dark1, sore1, grim1, glum1
- 5 letters
- awful2, fatal2, acute2, dread1, bleak1, lousy2
- 6 letters
- severe2, crying2, urgent2, gloomy2, dismal2, horrid2, dreary2, somber2, sombre, woeful2, boding
- 7 letters
- instant2, unhappy3, fearful2, hideous3, ominous3, dreaded2, fateful2, forlorn2, ruinous3, exigent3, baleful2, doleful2, direful, bodeful
- 8 letters
- critical3, terrible3, horrible3, shocking2, horrific3, dreadful2, sinister3, gruesome2, desolate3, fearsome2
- 9 letters
- desperate2, atrocious3, frightful2
- 10 letters
- tremendous3, depressing3, disastrous3, imperative4, horrendous3, foreboding3, calamitous4, portentous3
- 11 letters
- frightening3, unfavorable5
- 12 letters
- unfavourable
The small number after each word is its number of syllables (awful2 = 2 syllables).