worse

UK /wɜːs/ US /wɝs/

noun 2verb 1

Definitions

noun

Loss; disadvantage; defeat

Judah was put to the worse before Israel.

That which is worse; something less good.

Do not think the worse of him for his enterprise.

verb

To make worse; to put at disadvantage; to discomfit.

Weapons more violent, when next we meet, / May serve to better us and worse our foes.

Collocations

(adj.)

VERBS

be, feel, look, seem

The situation seemed worse than we had expected after hearing the full story.

become, get, grow

Her headache became worse after staring at the computer screen for three hours.

make sth

Shouting at him will only make the situation worse.

ADV

considerably, dramatically, far, a good/great deal, infinitely, a lot, (very) much, a sight, significantly

Her test scores were considerably worse this semester than last year.

almost

The second test was almost worse than the first one because I had even less time to prepare.

a little, rather, slightly, substantially

progressively, steadily

His health declined steadily worse over the past year until he finally saw a doctor.

even, still

My computer crashed during the exam, and even worse, I hadn't saved my work.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

adjective — changed for the worse in health or fitness

worsened

Antonyms

better

Idioms & Phrases

worse for wear

In poor physical condition due to long or heavy use.

However, before Zoe could open the first cage, Burt’s van, looking decidedly the worse for wear, came thundering into the warehouse, smashing the huge metal sliding door into the a

one's bark is worse than one's bite

One acts in a threatening way but is relatively harmless.

make matters worse

To worsen an already difficult situation or unfavourable set of circumstances, typically by acting rashly, foolishly, or incompetently.

His resentful attitude only made matters worse during the custody proceedings.

take a turn for the worse

To start to become worse; to worsen.

Rest assured, this will not last. Take a turn for the worse. Your hate, clipped and distant. Your luck, [a] two-headed cow.

worse things happen at sea

Things are not as bad as they seem.

Some people console themselves with the thought that, basically, worse things happen at sea: in middle-class Britain today, particularly familied fortysomethings, it’s Chicken-Lick

Example Bank

Judah was put to the worse before Israel.

Wiktionary

Do not think the worse of him for his enterprise.

Wiktionary

Weapons more violent, when next we meet, / May serve to better us and worse our foes.

Wiktionary

I don't know what is worse.

Tatoeba · #2148

Life in prison is worse than the life of an animal.

Tatoeba · #2149

We tried so hard to make things better for our kids that we made them worse.

Tatoeba · #2406

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, worse is marked as obsolete. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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