Bad crossword clue

The most likely answers for the crossword clue “Bad” are SORRY, WORST or WORSE, with 5 letters. Below are 83 answers from 3 to 13 letters, best match first in each length, then what each top answer means and how to tell them apart.

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The best answers, explained

BIG 3 letters · adjective

serious or severe “in a big rage”

HARD 4 letters · adjective

not easy; requiring great physical or mental effort to accomplish or comprehend or endure “why is it so hard for you to keep a secret?”

SORRY 5 letters · adjective

feeling or expressing regret or sorrow or a sense of loss over something done or undone

PRETTY 6 letters · adjective

(used ironically) unexpectedly bad “a pretty mess”

INTENSE 7 letters · adjective

possessing or displaying a distinctive feature to a heightened degree “intense heat”

NEGATIVE 8 letters · adjective

characterized by or displaying negation or denial or opposition or resistance; having no positive features “a negative outlook on life”

UNHEALTHY 9 letters · adjective

not in or exhibiting good health in body or mind “unhealthy ulcers”

UNSUITABLE 10 letters · adjective

not meant or adapted for a particular purpose “a solvent unsuitable for use on wood surfaces”

INCOMPETENT 11 letters · adjective

legally not qualified or sufficient “incompetent witnesses”

UNCOMFORTABLE 13 letters · adjective

conducive to or feeling mental discomfort “this kind of life can prove disruptive and uncomfortable”

Telling them apart

With 4 squares, HARD, EVIL, RANK, ALAS and ICKY all fit. The first letter tells them all apart: H → HARD · E → EVIL · R → RANK · A → ALAS · I → ICKY. Fill in that crossing answer first.

With 5 squares, SORRY, WORST, WORSE, TOUGH, AWFUL and RISKY all fit. The first letter settles most of it: S → SORRY · W → WORST, WORSE · T → TOUGH · A → AWFUL · R → RISKY. Fill in that crossing answer first.

With 3 squares, BIG, SAD, ILL and FIT all fit. The first letter tells them all apart: B → BIG · S → SAD · I → ILL · F → FIT. Fill in that crossing answer first.

Other forms of this clue

Clues often use another form of the word, and the answer then takes the same form: “bads” wants an answer that ends the same way.

What “bad” means

• adjective: having undesirable or negative qualities (“a bad report card”)
• adjective: serious or severe (“a bad headache”)
• adjective: feeling physical discomfort or pain (‘tough’ is occasionally used colloquially for ‘bad’) (“my throat feels bad”)
• adjective: (of foodstuffs) not in an edible or usable condition (“bad meat”)

A clue usually points at one of these senses, so the right answer is the one that matches the sense the puzzle means: check it against the crossing words.

About these answers

We match the clue against our own thesaurus and dictionary (Open English WordNet): words that mean the same as BAD, and words whose definition is BAD. We don't copy answers from newspaper puzzles, so a clue that leans on trivia or wordplay may need the crossing letters instead.