Antonyms for nasty


Grammar : Adj
Spell : nas-tee
Phonetic Transcription : ˈnæs ti


Definition of nasty

Origin :
  • c.1400, "foul, filthy, dirty, unclean," of unknown origin; perhaps [Barnhart] from Old French nastre "miserly, envious, malicious, spiteful," shortened form of villenastre "infamous, bad," from vilein "villain" + -astre, pejorative suffix, from Latin -aster.
  • Alternative etymology [OED] is from Dutch nestig "dirty," literally "like a bird's nest." Likely reinforced in either case by a Scandinavian source (cf. Swedish dialectal naskug "dirty, nasty"), which also might be the source of the Middle English word. Of weather, from 1630s; of things generally, "unpleasant, offensive," from 1705. Of people, "ill-tempered," from 1825. Noun meaning "something nasty" is from 1935. Related: Nastily; nastiness.
  • adj disgusting, offensive
  • adj indecent, smutty
  • adj bad-tempered, mean
  • adj injurious, dangerous
Example sentences :
  • The adult who is nasty is not allowed to do what he likes: neither can the child who likes to be nasty.
  • Extract from : « A Treatise on Parents and Children » by George Bernard Shaw
  • Miss Georgie was, without doubt, in a nasty temper that night.
  • Extract from : « Good Indian » by B. M. Bower
  • It's nasty to have the dirt jumpin' up right where you've got to walk.
  • Extract from : « Southern Lights and Shadows » by Various
  • They've been just gorging chickens this last year—nasty beasts!
  • Extract from : « The Coryston Family » by Mrs. Humphry Ward
  • I hoped, however, that diplomacy might still save us all sorts of a nasty row.
  • Extract from : « Ruggles of Red Gap » by Harry Leon Wilson
  • That was too nasty a morsel for even this monster to swallow; so it let go its hold of the boat.
  • Extract from : « Aino Folk-Tales » by Basil Hall Chamberlain
  • But now, since I have borne him this nasty child, he loves it more than he does me.
  • Extract from : « Aino Folk-Tales » by Basil Hall Chamberlain
  • It is as much as to say that you would write one of the nasty kind of book, if you dared.
  • Extract from : « People of Position » by Stanley Portal Hyatt
  • It was a nasty trick for Ida to play you, although just what I should have expected from her or May.
  • Extract from : « People of Position » by Stanley Portal Hyatt
  • He was not less shocked by the nasty stories that circulated with regard to her.
  • Extract from : « The Fortune of the Rougons » by Emile Zola

Synonyms for nasty

Based on : Thesaurus.com - Gutenberg.org - Dictionary.com - Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019