schrecklich

adjective
terrible, awful
A2

Schrecklich is an adjective meaning 'terrible' or 'awful', used to describe something very bad or frightening. It is gradable: comparative schrecklicher, superlative am schrecklichsten. Common antonyms include wundervoll and schön. It’s a regular adjective, not a participle, and follows normal adjective inflection.

Examples

Es war eine schreckliche Nachricht für die ganze Familie.
It was an awful piece of news for the whole family.
Die Nachricht war schrecklich, weil viele Menschen betroffen waren.
The news was terrible because many people were affected.
Das Essen gestern war schrecklich, ich habe kaum etwas gegessen.
The food yesterday was terrible; I hardly ate anything.

Details

GradableYes
Comparativeschrecklicher
Superlativeam schrecklichsten
ParticipleNo

Mnemonics

👁️Imagine a scary movie poster with the word 'schrecklich' stamped across it in red.
👂Sounds like 'shrek' — think of something monstrous to remember 'terrible'.

Notes

Used broadly for strong negative reactions. Not to be confused with 'erschreckend' (frightening).

Category

Vocabulary Explorer

Related Words

Nearby in Dictionary