Definition of ugly in English:

ugly

adjectiveugliest, uglier ˈʌɡliˈəɡli

1Unpleasant or repulsive, especially in appearance.
（尤指外表）难看的，丑（陋）的；讨厌的
people in school always told me I was ugly
the ugly sound of a fire alarm
讨厌的火灾警报声。
Example sentencesExamples
- She tries to speak but there is only an ugly gasping sound.
- Its merciless laugh was like blood bubbling in its tufted throat, an ugly sneer produced in sounds.
- Despite their ugly appearance, their bodies are ideally shaped for relentless running down of prey.
- The bookcase made an, ugly scraping sound as they pushed it, but it was moving.
- They were fat, ugly men with wicked faces, like the one in the picture on the opposite page.
- Big, bald and ugly, he appears the embodiment of what the XFL sees itself becoming.
- I experience things as beautiful or ugly, pleasant or unpleasant, agreeable or disagreeable.
- It was not stream lined, more like gothic beehive in appearance with ugly spires jutting from both ends of the craft's structure.
- American society, on the other hand, has always regarded the fat person as ugly and offensive.
- The sad, the ignored, the ugly and the repulsive wander in between the hours of 12 and 5.
- If reality is too ugly or unpleasant, we shut it out and pretend it's not there.
- But my current phone is a Sharp, and it has a fat ugly connector that no-one seems to have.
- Peter laughed, his voice sounding harsh and ugly, and his mouth twisted into a sardonic sneer.
- His wrist gave an ugly grinding sound and searing pain tore through him like knives.
- He started chanting the incantation of a dark spell, full of ugly guttural sounds.
- She refused to look up at him but his ugly reflection appeared in the water.
- The election result is basically one big, fat, ugly dark cloud with a few little silver linings hanging off it.
- The answer occurred to me almost straight away - I was repulsed because they were ugly!
- Sam, what on earth possessed you to spend all that time making a terrine that has the appearance of an ugly, withered, old leather boot?
- What I didn't like was the cruel way the north wind would dry out my lips to such an extent that a huge ugly gash always appeared on my bottom lip.
Synonyms
unattractive, ill-favoured, hideous, plain, plain-featured, plain-looking, unlovely, unprepossessing, unsightly, displeasing, disagreeable
horrible, frightful, awful, ghastly, gruesome, grisly, unpleasant, foul, nasty, grim, vile, shocking, disgusting, revolting, repellent, repugnant, grotesque, monstrous, reptilian, misshapen, deformed, disfigured
North American homely
informal not much to look at, short on looks, as plain as a pikestaff, as ugly as sin, fugly
British informal no oil painting
New Zealand informal huckery
2Involving or likely to involve violence or other unpleasantness.
（形势或气氛）险恶的；不祥的
the mood in the room turned ugly
屋内气氛变得凶险。
Example sentencesExamples
- Luckily, the timely intervention of a dutiful cop prevented the scene from getting ugly.
- You might have expected an ugly scene, or at least the odd raised voice.
- When thousands of desperate applicants instead showed up, the scene quickly turned ugly and the police intervened.
- The ugly scenes witnessed last year are sure to make a comeback this year.
- Beyond that, there were no reports of violence and other ugly scenes that have characterised past elections.
- I asked myself whether I really wanted to get involved in this ugly, terrible stuff.
- Angry scenes and ugly fracas are commonplace as people scramble for the few available taxis.
- As the ugly scenes on the pitch spilled over into the crowd, police were called to the Corbet Field ground.
- He says that we are not yet seeing the kind of rage which accompanies the surfing season in Australia, where crowded surf can lead to ugly scenes.
- I quickly called my partner over and we watched in terror as it all unfolded into a really ugly scene.
- It's hard not to warm to these men, who are nothing like the ugly, violent stereotypes we expect them to be.
- The management and board, smelling a big ugly scene, capitulated and accepted the union.
- Timely intervention by the respective authorities prevented an ugly scene.
- It was, in fact, not an ugly scene but at best it was one in which there might have been a subtle sneer involved.
- I just don't see how creating an ugly, violent scene could possibly make those bereaved parents feel better.
- Now that we have the names of the eight bidders, how interesting and how ugly is it likely to be?
- Today these ugly scenes and remarks could be seen and heard on TV, worldwide, unlike in the past.
- Taiwanese realize the danger that China poses, but they do not think this is a danger that is likely to turn very ugly very quickly.
- For a moment, it was if she had left her body and was watching this ugly scene happen to someone else.
- This is a film of uncompromising intensity and breathstealing beauty, as violent and ugly as anything that nature can conceive.
Synonyms
unpleasant, nasty, alarming, disagreeable, tense, charged, serious, grave, dangerous, perilous, threatening, menacing, hostile, ominous, sinister
archaic direful
rare minacious
1. 2.1 Unpleasantly suggestive; causing disquiet.
  丑恶的，烦人的；令人不安的
  ugly rumours persisted that there had been a cover-up
  真相被掩盖的丑恶传闻一直存在。
  Example sentencesExamples
  She thought of the ugly rumors that were going around about her and it released her anger a little.
  She looked at the boys as their mouths formed the sounds of ugly words, pouring down at her like hot molasses.
  Synonyms
  horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked
2. 2.2 Morally repugnant.
  道德败坏的；丑恶的；卑鄙的
  racism and its most ugly manifestations, racial attacks and harassment
  种族主义及其最卑鄙的表现，如种族攻击和骚扰。
  Example sentencesExamples
  To hear him speak is a sobering reminder of the ugly scars left behind by apartheid.
  Since then, I have noticed that democracy isn't always pretty and capitalism can be downright ugly.
  That's the ugly reality behind the intellectual justifications of realpolitik.
  By doing this, it suggests continuity with the old regime, rather than complicity in an ugly coup of a popular mayor.
  These days most of us don't want to get too involved in national politics because it seems to partisan and ugly.
  In his prime, his vindictiveness was ugly and frightening; now it's ugly and a little pathetic.
  There is nobody more ugly than a violent wing nut embracing his victimhood.
  But there's a second kind of criticism that says the political run-up to this thing was pretty ugly.
  Sadly, the ugly arm of slavery reaches far beyond Sudan and shockingly touches every continent except Antarctica.
  He is so ugly on the inside that his only forte is being beautiful and absolutely vicious on the outside!
  But the offer is vetoed by Finn, who alone sees the ugly fascist behind The Man's smooth mask of respectability.
  Synonyms
  horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked

Derivatives

uglification

noun ˌʌɡlɪfɪˈkeɪʃənˌəɡləfəˈkeɪʃən

The 68-year-old, who smokes 30 cigarettes a day, also declared the black and white EU-imposed public health warnings on cigarette packets ‘the uglification of Europe’.
Example sentencesExamples
- She has been criticized for being too beautiful for the part, and much has been made about her onscreen uglification, complete with her adoption of Kahlo's signature seagull-wing eyebrows.
- Shaggy's statement that Lismore City Council's uglification of the riverbank has nothing to do with the flood levee is false.

uglify

verbuglified, uglifies, uglifying ˈʌɡlɪfʌɪˈəɡləˌfaɪ

[with object]

Cause to appear ugly or unattractive.
builders continue to uglify cities with soulless modern office monstrosities
Example sentencesExamples
- The gates of deserted factories, empty buildings, shabby houses, destroyed statues… Zhou could once have been accused of ‘viciously picturing the dark side and uglifying the city’ in a less tolerant social environment.
- I prefer not to uglify the scheme by adding significant figures, so for the purposes of this discussion, I will regard us as still being a Type 0.7.
- I decided that enough was finally enough, and sorted out the multiple electrical devices that had been uglifying my desk all these months.

uglily

adverb

Germany can not only win games uglily, but also dominates them like that.
Example sentencesExamples
- It was merely that I was not beautifully conspicuous but uglily conspicuous - it makes all the difference in the world.
- Why then does that village which my fancy conjures up call to mind a heap of reptiles breeding uglily in a bucket?
- I was scared of death and did not want to die so uglily.
- Firefox and other browsers just let the rubric extend uglily beyond the edge of the content container.
- I wondered as I saw some men in uniform gathered by the rear gate of the prison which squats uglily next to my flat.
- A Beijing smoker has brought a tobacco company and one of its sales agent to court, accusing them for producing or selling cigarettes which turned his teeth uglily yellow, the Beijing News reports on Tuesday.
- I can't believe I am studying beautiful music in such and uglily run country/world/universe.
- Originally posted by ragejg at least you're not eccentrically ugly… or uglily eccentric
- And as far as sex goes, our white civilisation is crude, barbaric, and uglily savage.

Origin

Middle English: from Old Norse uggligr 'to be dreaded', from ugga 'to dread'.

The word ugly came into English in the 13th century from Old Norse uggligr ‘to be dreaded’, and had a stronger meaning than it does now, ‘frightful or horrible’. In Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale the ‘ugly duckling’ is a cygnet hatched by a duck that is jeered at until it turns into a graceful swan. The tale appeared in English in a translation of 1846, and ugly duckling was soon in use for people. The American entertainer Danny Kaye brought the idea to a wider audience when he wrote and sang ‘The Ugly Duckling’ in a 1952 biographical film of Andersen's life. In Cinderella, the heroine has two ugly and unpleasant stepsisters who make her work in the kitchen. Since the late 19th century an ugly sister has been an unattractive person or thing or an undesirable counterpart. More recent is the ugly American, the American who behaves offensively abroad. The original context of the phrase is that of Americans who adversely affect the lives of the people they live among in southeast Asia. It comes from the title of a 1958 book by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick, which was released as a film starring Marlon Brando in 1963.

Rhymes

plug-ugly

Definition of ugly in US English:

ugly

adjectiveˈəɡliˈəɡlē

1Unpleasant or repulsive, especially in appearance.
（尤指外表）难看的，丑（陋）的；讨厌的
people in school always told me I was ugly
the ugly sound of a fire alarm
讨厌的火灾警报声。
Example sentencesExamples
- The election result is basically one big, fat, ugly dark cloud with a few little silver linings hanging off it.
- She tries to speak but there is only an ugly gasping sound.
- What I didn't like was the cruel way the north wind would dry out my lips to such an extent that a huge ugly gash always appeared on my bottom lip.
- Its merciless laugh was like blood bubbling in its tufted throat, an ugly sneer produced in sounds.
- American society, on the other hand, has always regarded the fat person as ugly and offensive.
- But my current phone is a Sharp, and it has a fat ugly connector that no-one seems to have.
- The sad, the ignored, the ugly and the repulsive wander in between the hours of 12 and 5.
- It was not stream lined, more like gothic beehive in appearance with ugly spires jutting from both ends of the craft's structure.
- He started chanting the incantation of a dark spell, full of ugly guttural sounds.
- If reality is too ugly or unpleasant, we shut it out and pretend it's not there.
- Peter laughed, his voice sounding harsh and ugly, and his mouth twisted into a sardonic sneer.
- The answer occurred to me almost straight away - I was repulsed because they were ugly!
- His wrist gave an ugly grinding sound and searing pain tore through him like knives.
- She refused to look up at him but his ugly reflection appeared in the water.
- Despite their ugly appearance, their bodies are ideally shaped for relentless running down of prey.
- Sam, what on earth possessed you to spend all that time making a terrine that has the appearance of an ugly, withered, old leather boot?
- Big, bald and ugly, he appears the embodiment of what the XFL sees itself becoming.
- The bookcase made an, ugly scraping sound as they pushed it, but it was moving.
- I experience things as beautiful or ugly, pleasant or unpleasant, agreeable or disagreeable.
- They were fat, ugly men with wicked faces, like the one in the picture on the opposite page.
Synonyms
unattractive, ill-favoured, hideous, plain, plain-featured, plain-looking, unlovely, unprepossessing, unsightly, displeasing, disagreeable
2Involving or likely to involve violence or other unpleasantness.
（形势或气氛）险恶的；不祥的
the mood in the room turned ugly
屋内气氛变得凶险。
Example sentencesExamples
- Luckily, the timely intervention of a dutiful cop prevented the scene from getting ugly.
- The ugly scenes witnessed last year are sure to make a comeback this year.
- I asked myself whether I really wanted to get involved in this ugly, terrible stuff.
- As the ugly scenes on the pitch spilled over into the crowd, police were called to the Corbet Field ground.
- Beyond that, there were no reports of violence and other ugly scenes that have characterised past elections.
- He says that we are not yet seeing the kind of rage which accompanies the surfing season in Australia, where crowded surf can lead to ugly scenes.
- For a moment, it was if she had left her body and was watching this ugly scene happen to someone else.
- I just don't see how creating an ugly, violent scene could possibly make those bereaved parents feel better.
- I quickly called my partner over and we watched in terror as it all unfolded into a really ugly scene.
- Angry scenes and ugly fracas are commonplace as people scramble for the few available taxis.
- It was, in fact, not an ugly scene but at best it was one in which there might have been a subtle sneer involved.
- This is a film of uncompromising intensity and breathstealing beauty, as violent and ugly as anything that nature can conceive.
- When thousands of desperate applicants instead showed up, the scene quickly turned ugly and the police intervened.
- Now that we have the names of the eight bidders, how interesting and how ugly is it likely to be?
- It's hard not to warm to these men, who are nothing like the ugly, violent stereotypes we expect them to be.
- Today these ugly scenes and remarks could be seen and heard on TV, worldwide, unlike in the past.
- Timely intervention by the respective authorities prevented an ugly scene.
- The management and board, smelling a big ugly scene, capitulated and accepted the union.
- Taiwanese realize the danger that China poses, but they do not think this is a danger that is likely to turn very ugly very quickly.
- You might have expected an ugly scene, or at least the odd raised voice.
Synonyms
unpleasant, nasty, alarming, disagreeable, tense, charged, serious, grave, dangerous, perilous, threatening, menacing, hostile, ominous, sinister
1. 2.1 Unpleasantly suggestive; causing disquiet.
  丑恶的，烦人的；令人不安的
  ugly rumors persisted that there had been a cover-up
  真相被掩盖的丑恶传闻一直存在。
  Example sentencesExamples
  She looked at the boys as their mouths formed the sounds of ugly words, pouring down at her like hot molasses.
  She thought of the ugly rumors that were going around about her and it released her anger a little.
  Synonyms
  horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked
2. 2.2 Morally repugnant.
  道德败坏的；丑恶的；卑鄙的
  racism and its most ugly manifestations, racial attacks and harassment
  种族主义及其最卑鄙的表现，如种族攻击和骚扰。
  Example sentencesExamples
  He is so ugly on the inside that his only forte is being beautiful and absolutely vicious on the outside!
  That's the ugly reality behind the intellectual justifications of realpolitik.
  There is nobody more ugly than a violent wing nut embracing his victimhood.
  In his prime, his vindictiveness was ugly and frightening; now it's ugly and a little pathetic.
  To hear him speak is a sobering reminder of the ugly scars left behind by apartheid.
  By doing this, it suggests continuity with the old regime, rather than complicity in an ugly coup of a popular mayor.
  But there's a second kind of criticism that says the political run-up to this thing was pretty ugly.
  But the offer is vetoed by Finn, who alone sees the ugly fascist behind The Man's smooth mask of respectability.
  These days most of us don't want to get too involved in national politics because it seems to partisan and ugly.
  Since then, I have noticed that democracy isn't always pretty and capitalism can be downright ugly.
  Sadly, the ugly arm of slavery reaches far beyond Sudan and shockingly touches every continent except Antarctica.
  Synonyms
  horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked

Origin

Middle English: from Old Norse uggligr ‘to be dreaded’, from ugga ‘to dread’.

词汇	ugly
释义	Definition of ugly in English: ugly adjectiveugliest, uglier ˈʌɡliˈəɡli 1Unpleasant or repulsive, especially in appearance. （尤指外表）难看的，丑（陋）的；讨厌的 people in school always told me I was ugly the ugly sound of a fire alarm 讨厌的火灾警报声。 Example sentencesExamples She tries to speak but there is only an ugly gasping sound. Its merciless laugh was like blood bubbling in its tufted throat, an ugly sneer produced in sounds. Despite their ugly appearance, their bodies are ideally shaped for relentless running down of prey. The bookcase made an, ugly scraping sound as they pushed it, but it was moving. They were fat, ugly men with wicked faces, like the one in the picture on the opposite page. Big, bald and ugly, he appears the embodiment of what the XFL sees itself becoming. I experience things as beautiful or ugly, pleasant or unpleasant, agreeable or disagreeable. It was not stream lined, more like gothic beehive in appearance with ugly spires jutting from both ends of the craft's structure. American society, on the other hand, has always regarded the fat person as ugly and offensive. The sad, the ignored, the ugly and the repulsive wander in between the hours of 12 and 5. If reality is too ugly or unpleasant, we shut it out and pretend it's not there. But my current phone is a Sharp, and it has a fat ugly connector that no-one seems to have. Peter laughed, his voice sounding harsh and ugly, and his mouth twisted into a sardonic sneer. His wrist gave an ugly grinding sound and searing pain tore through him like knives. He started chanting the incantation of a dark spell, full of ugly guttural sounds. She refused to look up at him but his ugly reflection appeared in the water. The election result is basically one big, fat, ugly dark cloud with a few little silver linings hanging off it. The answer occurred to me almost straight away - I was repulsed because they were ugly! Sam, what on earth possessed you to spend all that time making a terrine that has the appearance of an ugly, withered, old leather boot? What I didn't like was the cruel way the north wind would dry out my lips to such an extent that a huge ugly gash always appeared on my bottom lip. Synonyms unattractive, ill-favoured, hideous, plain, plain-featured, plain-looking, unlovely, unprepossessing, unsightly, displeasing, disagreeable horrible, frightful, awful, ghastly, gruesome, grisly, unpleasant, foul, nasty, grim, vile, shocking, disgusting, revolting, repellent, repugnant, grotesque, monstrous, reptilian, misshapen, deformed, disfigured North American homely informal not much to look at, short on looks, as plain as a pikestaff, as ugly as sin, fugly British informal no oil painting New Zealand informal huckery 2Involving or likely to involve violence or other unpleasantness. （形势或气氛）险恶的；不祥的 the mood in the room turned ugly 屋内气氛变得凶险。 Example sentencesExamples Luckily, the timely intervention of a dutiful cop prevented the scene from getting ugly. You might have expected an ugly scene, or at least the odd raised voice. When thousands of desperate applicants instead showed up, the scene quickly turned ugly and the police intervened. The ugly scenes witnessed last year are sure to make a comeback this year. Beyond that, there were no reports of violence and other ugly scenes that have characterised past elections. I asked myself whether I really wanted to get involved in this ugly, terrible stuff. Angry scenes and ugly fracas are commonplace as people scramble for the few available taxis. As the ugly scenes on the pitch spilled over into the crowd, police were called to the Corbet Field ground. He says that we are not yet seeing the kind of rage which accompanies the surfing season in Australia, where crowded surf can lead to ugly scenes. I quickly called my partner over and we watched in terror as it all unfolded into a really ugly scene. It's hard not to warm to these men, who are nothing like the ugly, violent stereotypes we expect them to be. The management and board, smelling a big ugly scene, capitulated and accepted the union. Timely intervention by the respective authorities prevented an ugly scene. It was, in fact, not an ugly scene but at best it was one in which there might have been a subtle sneer involved. I just don't see how creating an ugly, violent scene could possibly make those bereaved parents feel better. Now that we have the names of the eight bidders, how interesting and how ugly is it likely to be? Today these ugly scenes and remarks could be seen and heard on TV, worldwide, unlike in the past. Taiwanese realize the danger that China poses, but they do not think this is a danger that is likely to turn very ugly very quickly. For a moment, it was if she had left her body and was watching this ugly scene happen to someone else. This is a film of uncompromising intensity and breathstealing beauty, as violent and ugly as anything that nature can conceive. Synonyms unpleasant, nasty, alarming, disagreeable, tense, charged, serious, grave, dangerous, perilous, threatening, menacing, hostile, ominous, sinister archaic direful rare minacious 2.1 Unpleasantly suggestive; causing disquiet. 丑恶的，烦人的；令人不安的 ugly rumours persisted that there had been a cover-up 真相被掩盖的丑恶传闻一直存在。 Example sentencesExamples She thought of the ugly rumors that were going around about her and it released her anger a little. She looked at the boys as their mouths formed the sounds of ugly words, pouring down at her like hot molasses. Synonyms horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked 2.2 Morally repugnant. 道德败坏的；丑恶的；卑鄙的 racism and its most ugly manifestations, racial attacks and harassment 种族主义及其最卑鄙的表现，如种族攻击和骚扰。 Example sentencesExamples To hear him speak is a sobering reminder of the ugly scars left behind by apartheid. Since then, I have noticed that democracy isn't always pretty and capitalism can be downright ugly. That's the ugly reality behind the intellectual justifications of realpolitik. By doing this, it suggests continuity with the old regime, rather than complicity in an ugly coup of a popular mayor. These days most of us don't want to get too involved in national politics because it seems to partisan and ugly. In his prime, his vindictiveness was ugly and frightening; now it's ugly and a little pathetic. There is nobody more ugly than a violent wing nut embracing his victimhood. But there's a second kind of criticism that says the political run-up to this thing was pretty ugly. Sadly, the ugly arm of slavery reaches far beyond Sudan and shockingly touches every continent except Antarctica. He is so ugly on the inside that his only forte is being beautiful and absolutely vicious on the outside! But the offer is vetoed by Finn, who alone sees the ugly fascist behind The Man's smooth mask of respectability. Synonyms horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked Derivatives uglification noun ˌʌɡlɪfɪˈkeɪʃənˌəɡləfəˈkeɪʃən The 68-year-old, who smokes 30 cigarettes a day, also declared the black and white EU-imposed public health warnings on cigarette packets ‘the uglification of Europe’. Example sentencesExamples She has been criticized for being too beautiful for the part, and much has been made about her onscreen uglification, complete with her adoption of Kahlo's signature seagull-wing eyebrows. Shaggy's statement that Lismore City Council's uglification of the riverbank has nothing to do with the flood levee is false. uglify verbuglified, uglifies, uglifying ˈʌɡlɪfʌɪˈəɡləˌfaɪ [with object] Cause to appear ugly or unattractive. builders continue to uglify cities with soulless modern office monstrosities Example sentencesExamples The gates of deserted factories, empty buildings, shabby houses, destroyed statues… Zhou could once have been accused of ‘viciously picturing the dark side and uglifying the city’ in a less tolerant social environment. I prefer not to uglify the scheme by adding significant figures, so for the purposes of this discussion, I will regard us as still being a Type 0.7. I decided that enough was finally enough, and sorted out the multiple electrical devices that had been uglifying my desk all these months. uglily adverb Germany can not only win games uglily, but also dominates them like that. Example sentencesExamples It was merely that I was not beautifully conspicuous but uglily conspicuous - it makes all the difference in the world. Why then does that village which my fancy conjures up call to mind a heap of reptiles breeding uglily in a bucket? I was scared of death and did not want to die so uglily. Firefox and other browsers just let the rubric extend uglily beyond the edge of the content container. I wondered as I saw some men in uniform gathered by the rear gate of the prison which squats uglily next to my flat. A Beijing smoker has brought a tobacco company and one of its sales agent to court, accusing them for producing or selling cigarettes which turned his teeth uglily yellow, the Beijing News reports on Tuesday. I can't believe I am studying beautiful music in such and uglily run country/world/universe. Originally posted by ragejg at least you're not eccentrically ugly… or uglily eccentric And as far as sex goes, our white civilisation is crude, barbaric, and uglily savage. Origin Middle English: from Old Norse uggligr 'to be dreaded', from ugga 'to dread'. The word ugly came into English in the 13th century from Old Norse uggligr ‘to be dreaded’, and had a stronger meaning than it does now, ‘frightful or horrible’. In Hans Christian Andersen's fairy tale the ‘ugly duckling’ is a cygnet hatched by a duck that is jeered at until it turns into a graceful swan. The tale appeared in English in a translation of 1846, and ugly duckling was soon in use for people. The American entertainer Danny Kaye brought the idea to a wider audience when he wrote and sang ‘The Ugly Duckling’ in a 1952 biographical film of Andersen's life. In Cinderella, the heroine has two ugly and unpleasant stepsisters who make her work in the kitchen. Since the late 19th century an ugly sister has been an unattractive person or thing or an undesirable counterpart. More recent is the ugly American, the American who behaves offensively abroad. The original context of the phrase is that of Americans who adversely affect the lives of the people they live among in southeast Asia. It comes from the title of a 1958 book by William Lederer and Eugene Burdick, which was released as a film starring Marlon Brando in 1963. Rhymes plug-ugly Definition of ugly in US English: ugly adjectiveˈəɡliˈəɡlē 1Unpleasant or repulsive, especially in appearance. （尤指外表）难看的，丑（陋）的；讨厌的 people in school always told me I was ugly the ugly sound of a fire alarm 讨厌的火灾警报声。 Example sentencesExamples The election result is basically one big, fat, ugly dark cloud with a few little silver linings hanging off it. She tries to speak but there is only an ugly gasping sound. What I didn't like was the cruel way the north wind would dry out my lips to such an extent that a huge ugly gash always appeared on my bottom lip. Its merciless laugh was like blood bubbling in its tufted throat, an ugly sneer produced in sounds. American society, on the other hand, has always regarded the fat person as ugly and offensive. But my current phone is a Sharp, and it has a fat ugly connector that no-one seems to have. The sad, the ignored, the ugly and the repulsive wander in between the hours of 12 and 5. It was not stream lined, more like gothic beehive in appearance with ugly spires jutting from both ends of the craft's structure. He started chanting the incantation of a dark spell, full of ugly guttural sounds. If reality is too ugly or unpleasant, we shut it out and pretend it's not there. Peter laughed, his voice sounding harsh and ugly, and his mouth twisted into a sardonic sneer. The answer occurred to me almost straight away - I was repulsed because they were ugly! His wrist gave an ugly grinding sound and searing pain tore through him like knives. She refused to look up at him but his ugly reflection appeared in the water. Despite their ugly appearance, their bodies are ideally shaped for relentless running down of prey. Sam, what on earth possessed you to spend all that time making a terrine that has the appearance of an ugly, withered, old leather boot? Big, bald and ugly, he appears the embodiment of what the XFL sees itself becoming. The bookcase made an, ugly scraping sound as they pushed it, but it was moving. I experience things as beautiful or ugly, pleasant or unpleasant, agreeable or disagreeable. They were fat, ugly men with wicked faces, like the one in the picture on the opposite page. Synonyms unattractive, ill-favoured, hideous, plain, plain-featured, plain-looking, unlovely, unprepossessing, unsightly, displeasing, disagreeable 2Involving or likely to involve violence or other unpleasantness. （形势或气氛）险恶的；不祥的 the mood in the room turned ugly 屋内气氛变得凶险。 Example sentencesExamples Luckily, the timely intervention of a dutiful cop prevented the scene from getting ugly. The ugly scenes witnessed last year are sure to make a comeback this year. I asked myself whether I really wanted to get involved in this ugly, terrible stuff. As the ugly scenes on the pitch spilled over into the crowd, police were called to the Corbet Field ground. Beyond that, there were no reports of violence and other ugly scenes that have characterised past elections. He says that we are not yet seeing the kind of rage which accompanies the surfing season in Australia, where crowded surf can lead to ugly scenes. For a moment, it was if she had left her body and was watching this ugly scene happen to someone else. I just don't see how creating an ugly, violent scene could possibly make those bereaved parents feel better. I quickly called my partner over and we watched in terror as it all unfolded into a really ugly scene. Angry scenes and ugly fracas are commonplace as people scramble for the few available taxis. It was, in fact, not an ugly scene but at best it was one in which there might have been a subtle sneer involved. This is a film of uncompromising intensity and breathstealing beauty, as violent and ugly as anything that nature can conceive. When thousands of desperate applicants instead showed up, the scene quickly turned ugly and the police intervened. Now that we have the names of the eight bidders, how interesting and how ugly is it likely to be? It's hard not to warm to these men, who are nothing like the ugly, violent stereotypes we expect them to be. Today these ugly scenes and remarks could be seen and heard on TV, worldwide, unlike in the past. Timely intervention by the respective authorities prevented an ugly scene. The management and board, smelling a big ugly scene, capitulated and accepted the union. Taiwanese realize the danger that China poses, but they do not think this is a danger that is likely to turn very ugly very quickly. You might have expected an ugly scene, or at least the odd raised voice. Synonyms unpleasant, nasty, alarming, disagreeable, tense, charged, serious, grave, dangerous, perilous, threatening, menacing, hostile, ominous, sinister 2.1 Unpleasantly suggestive; causing disquiet. 丑恶的，烦人的；令人不安的 ugly rumors persisted that there had been a cover-up 真相被掩盖的丑恶传闻一直存在。 Example sentencesExamples She looked at the boys as their mouths formed the sounds of ugly words, pouring down at her like hot molasses. She thought of the ugly rumors that were going around about her and it released her anger a little. Synonyms horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked 2.2 Morally repugnant. 道德败坏的；丑恶的；卑鄙的 racism and its most ugly manifestations, racial attacks and harassment 种族主义及其最卑鄙的表现，如种族攻击和骚扰。 Example sentencesExamples He is so ugly on the inside that his only forte is being beautiful and absolutely vicious on the outside! That's the ugly reality behind the intellectual justifications of realpolitik. There is nobody more ugly than a violent wing nut embracing his victimhood. In his prime, his vindictiveness was ugly and frightening; now it's ugly and a little pathetic. To hear him speak is a sobering reminder of the ugly scars left behind by apartheid. By doing this, it suggests continuity with the old regime, rather than complicity in an ugly coup of a popular mayor. But there's a second kind of criticism that says the political run-up to this thing was pretty ugly. But the offer is vetoed by Finn, who alone sees the ugly fascist behind The Man's smooth mask of respectability. These days most of us don't want to get too involved in national politics because it seems to partisan and ugly. Since then, I have noticed that democracy isn't always pretty and capitalism can be downright ugly. Sadly, the ugly arm of slavery reaches far beyond Sudan and shockingly touches every continent except Antarctica. Synonyms horrible, unpleasant, disagreeable, despicable, reprehensible, nasty, horrid, appalling, objectionable, offensive, obnoxious, foul, vile, base, dishonourable, dishonest, rotten, vicious, spiteful, malevolent, evil, wicked Origin Middle English: from Old Norse uggligr ‘to be dreaded’, from ugga ‘to dread’.
随便看	taking no notice taking no notice of taking note of taking notice taking off taking-off board taking-off boy taking of life taking of someone's life taking on taking one's own life taking one's time taking out taking over taking over of taking part taking place takings takings takings clause taking screen taking something with a pinch of salt takingss taking the lord's name in vain taking the mickey