What does abominable mean?
Abominable is an adjective describing something that arouses intense disgust, loathing, or moral condemnation — conduct so cruel or shameful that it seems beyond excuse. Its force comes from deep roots: it derives from Latin abominari, an augural term meaning to deprecate as an ill omen, later reinterpreted through folk etymology as 'away from human' (ab + homine), which reinforced its sense of inhuman wickedness. In modern usage the word spans two registers of severity. At its strongest it condemns genuinely evil acts — an abominable crime, an abominable tyranny. More casually, especially in British English, it serves as emphatic hyperbole for anything thoroughly unpleasant: abominable weather, abominable manners, abominable traffic. This flexibility makes it useful for writers who want maximum disapproval without profanity. The word also lives in popular culture through the Abominable Snowman, the legendary Himalayan creature whose very name signals monstrous otherness.
adjectiveCausing intense disgust, loathing, or moral revulsion; utterly detestable. It is also used more loosely to describe something extremely unpleasant or of very poor quality.
- Causing intense disgust or moral revulsion; utterly detestable (e.g. abominable crimes).
- Extremely unpleasant or of very poor quality; used hyperbolically about weather, conditions, behaviour, etc. (e.g. abominable weather).
"The prisoners were kept in abominable conditions, with no clean water and little food."
"Slavery is rightly regarded today as an abominable institution."
"We abandoned the hike when the weather turned truly abominable."
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of abominable
Abominable comes from Latin abominari, meaning to deprecate or pronounce as an ill omen — a term used by Roman augurs. Medieval folk etymology reshaped it as though from ab homine ('away from man'), giving it the sense of something inhuman or beastly, and this reading influenced how strongly negative the word became. It entered English via Old French in the late medieval period, with early attestations around the 14th century. Cognates include French abominable and Spanish abominable, all descending from the same Latin root.
Usage notes
Abominable carries strong negative connotation and sits at the severe end of the disapproval spectrum — stronger than 'bad' or 'poor', comparable to 'atrocious' or 'egregious'. In everyday speech it is often used hyperbolically for bad weather or rude behaviour, which softens its force somewhat. The stress falls on the second syllable, and British speakers frequently reduce the middle syllables to three syllables (/əˈbɒmɪnəbl̩/), while American pronunciation typically keeps four.