ROTTEN: Synonyms and Related Words. What is Another Word for ROTTEN?

Need another word that means the same as “rotten”? Find 99 synonyms and 30 related words for “rotten” in this overview.

The synonyms of “Rotten” are: decayed, rotted, crappy, icky, lousy, shitty, stinking, stinky, decaying, bad, off, decomposing, putrid, putrescent, spoiled, spoilt, tainted, mouldy, mouldering, mildewy, sour, rancid, rank, festering, fetid, smelly, unfit for human consumption, crumbling, falling to pieces, carious, black, corrupt, unprincipled, dishonest, dishonourable, unscrupulous, untrustworthy, immoral, villainous, wicked, evil, sinful, iniquitous, vicious, base, amoral, debauched, degenerate, dissolute, dissipated, depraved, perverted, wanton, nasty, unkind, unpleasant, foul, obnoxious, vile, contemptible, despicable, wretched, shabby, poor, dreadful, awful, terrible, frightful, atrocious, hopeless, inadequate, inferior, unsatisfactory, laughable, substandard, horrible, unspeakable, disagreeable, miserable, grim, horrid, ghastly, ill, unwell, poorly, out of sorts, indisposed, sick, queasy, nauseous, nauseated, peaky, liverish, green around the gills, faint, dizzy, giddy, light-headed, very much

Rotten as an Adjective

Definitions of "Rotten" as an adjective

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “rotten” as an adjective can have the following definitions:

• Extremely unpleasant.
• Morally, socially, or politically corrupt.
• Having decayed or disintegrated; usually implies foulness.
• Unwell.
• Very bad.
• Damaged by decay; hence unsound and useless.
• Suffering from decay.

Synonyms of "Rotten" as an adjective (98 Words)

amoral	Lacking a moral sense; unconcerned with the rightness or wrongness of something. An amoral attitude to sex.
atrocious	Exceptionally bad or displeasing. Atrocious weather.
awful	Very bad or unpleasant. The place smelled awful.
bad	Feeling physical discomfort or pain tough is occasionally used colloquially for bad. Morning was a bad time to ask Andy about anything.
base	Of low birth or station base is archaic in this sense. That liberal obedience without which your army would be a base rabble.
black	Of the face made black especially as with suffused blood. Her long black hair.
carious	(of bones or teeth) decayed.
contemptible	Deserving of contempt or scorn. A display of contemptible cowardice.
corrupt	Evil or morally depraved. A corrupt text.
crumbling	Breaking or falling apart into small fragments, especially as part of a process of deterioration. A crumbling empire.
debauched	Unrestrained by convention or morality. Congreve draws a debauched aristocratic society.
decayed	Having rotted or decomposed. Decayed animal and plant matter.
decaying	Declining in quality, power, or vigour. A decaying industry.
decomposing	(of organic matter) in the process of decaying. Decomposing fungi.
degenerate	Lacking some usual or expected property or quality. A degenerate form of a higher civilization.
depraved	Morally corrupt; wicked. This city is depraved.
despicable	Morally reprehensible. Would do something as despicable as murder.
disagreeable	Not agreeing with your tastes or expectations. Henry was always a very disagreeable boy.
dishonest	Intended to mislead or cheat. Dishonest politicians.
dishonourable	Bringing shame or disgrace on someone or something. His crimes are petty and dishonourable.
dissipated	Preoccupied with the pursuit of pleasure and especially games of chance. Dissipated behaviour.
dissolute	Unrestrained by convention or morality. Unfortunately his heir was feckless and dissolute.
dizzy	Silly or scatterbrained (typically used of a woman. A dizzy range of hues.
dreadful	Exceptionally bad or displeasing. You re a dreadful flirt.
evil	Of a force or spirit embodying or associated with the forces of the devil. Stories about the evil effects of television on children make good copy.
faint	(of a sight, smell, or sound) barely perceptible. A faint outline.
falling to pieces	Decreasing in amount or degree.
festering	(of a negative feeling or a problem) becoming worse or more intense, especially through long-term neglect or indifference. A festering political crisis.
fetid	Smelling extremely unpleasant. The fetid water of the marsh.
foul	Not hit between the foul lines. A foul pond.
frightful	Very unpleasant, serious, or shocking. A frightful crime of decapitation.
ghastly	Causing great horror or fear. A ghastly pallor.
giddy	Excitable and frivolous. A giddy precipice.
green around the gills	Of the color between blue and yellow in the color spectrum; similar to the color of fresh grass.
grim	Harshly ironic or sinister. A grim man loving duty more than humanity.
hopeless	Certain to fail. I m hopeless at names.
horrible	Provoking horror- Winston Churchill. A horrible massacre.
horrid	Exceedingly bad. A horrid brown colour.
icky	Soft and sticky. A romantic subplot that is just plain icky.
ill	Presaging ill fortune. Of ill repute.
immoral	Deliberately violating accepted principles of right and wrong. They considered colonialism immoral.
inadequate	Of insufficient quantity to meet a need. An inadequate income.
indisposed	Averse; unwilling. Clearly indisposed to grant their request.
inferior	Of low or inferior quality. Inferior alveolar artery.
iniquitous	Grossly unfair and morally wrong. These awards remain an iniquitous system.
laughable	Incongruous;inviting ridicule. If it didn t make me so angry it would be laughable.
light-headed	Lacking seriousness; given to frivolity.
liverish	Slightly ill, as though having a disordered liver. A liverish red.
lousy	Unwell. The town is lousy with tourists.
mildewy	Affected by mildew; mouldy. The first room had a mildewy smell to it.
miserable	Causing unhappiness or discomfort. All they pay me is a miserable 8 000 a year.
mouldering	Slowly decaying or disintegrating, especially because of neglect. The smell of mouldering books.
mouldy	Covered with or smelling of mold. Mouldy conventions.
nasty	Disgustingly dirty; filled or smeared with offensive matter. Harry was a nasty foul mouthed old devil.
nauseated	Feeling nausea; feeling about to vomit.
nauseous	Disgusting or offensive. A rancid odour that made him nauseous.
obnoxious	Extremely unpleasant. Obnoxious odours.
off	Located on the side of a vehicle that is normally furthest from the kerb offside. The wedding is definitely off.
out of sorts	Out of power; especially having been unsuccessful in an election.
peaky	Having or as if having especially high-pitched spots. Absence of peaky highs and beefed up bass.
perverted	(used of sexual behavior) showing or appealing to bizarre or deviant tastes. A perverted translation of the poem.
poor	Lacking sufficient money to live at a standard considered comfortable or normal in a society. The water is poor in nutrients.
poorly	Unwell. She looked poorly.
putrescent	Becoming putrid. The odour of putrescent flesh.
putrid	Morally corrupt or evil. The cocktail is a putrid pink colour.
queasy	Causing or able to cause nausea. The queasy swell of the boat.
rancid	Smelling of fermentation or staleness. Rancid bacon.
rank	Very offensive in smell or taste. A rank outsider.
rotted	Damaged by decay; hence unsound and useless. Rotted beams.
shabby	Mean and unworthy and despicable. A conscript in a shabby uniform saluted the car.
sick	Affected with madness or insanity. He looked pretty sick at that but he eventually agreed.
sinful	Highly reprehensible. A sinful person.
smelly	Offensively malodorous. Smelly feet.
sour	(of petroleum or natural gas) containing a relatively high proportion of sulphur. Sour milk.
spoiled	(of a person, especially a child) harmed in character by being treated too leniently or indulgently. The smell of spoiled milk.
spoilt	Affected by blight; anything that mars or prevents growth or prosperity. A refrigerator full of spoilt food.
stinking	Foul-smelling. He was locked in a stinking cell.
stinky	Having a strong or unpleasant smell. He went to his stinky job year after year.
substandard	Falling short of some prescribed norm. Substandard spellings.
tainted	Touched by rot or decay. Tainted bacon.
terrible	Very unskilful. I was sick all night and felt terrible for two days.
unfit for human consumption	Physically unsound or diseased.
unkind	Deficient in humane and kindly feelings. The unkindest cut of all.
unpleasant	Causing discomfort, unhappiness, or revulsion; disagreeable. When drunk he could become very unpleasant.
unprincipled	(of a person or their behaviour) not acting in accordance with moral principles. Freedom from coarse unprincipled calumny.
unsatisfactory	Not giving satisfaction. Years of living in unsatisfactory rented accommodation.
unscrupulous	Without scruples or principles. Unscrupulous landlords might be tempted to harass existing tenants.
unspeakable	Exceptionally bad or displeasing. Unspeakable happiness.
untrustworthy	Not worthy of trust or belief. These untrustworthy impressions were instinctive.
unwell	Ill. He was admitted to hospital for tests after feeling unwell.
vicious	(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering. Vicious kicks.
vile	Extremely unpleasant. All the feasts that thou hast shared erewhile to mine shall be but vile.
villainous	Extremely wicked. A villainous plot.
wanton	Casual and unrestrained in sexual behavior. Wanton behavior.
wicked	Morally bad in principle or practice. A wicked stench.
wretched	Morally reprehensible. She disliked the wretched man intensely.

Usage Examples of "Rotten" as an adjective

• The supporting beams were rotten.
• Rotten eggs.
• He's had rotten luck this year.
• Dead and rotten in his grave.
• He believed that the whole art business was rotten.
• She tried to tell me she felt rotten.
• Rotten floor boards.
• She was a rotten cook.
• It's rotten for you having to cope on your own.

Rotten as an Adverb

Definitions of "Rotten" as an adverb

According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “rotten” as an adverb can have the following definitions:

• To an extreme degree; very much.

Synonyms of "Rotten" as an adverb (1 Word)

very much

Precisely so.

Usage Examples of "Rotten" as an adverb

• We used to send him up something rotten.
• Your mother said that I spoiled you rotten.

Associations of "Rotten" (30 Words)

corrosive	A corrosive substance. Corrosive cristism.
corrupt	Corrupt morally or by intemperance or sensuality. He has corrupted the boy.
debris	Scattered pieces of rubbish or remains. Workmen were clearing the roads of the debris from shattered buildings.
decay	Undergo decay or decomposition. The trapped radiocarbon begins to decay at a known rate.
decayed	Having fallen into disrepair; deteriorated. The restoration of decayed churches.
decompose	Separate (substances) into constituent elements or parts. Many chemicals decompose rapidly under high temperature.
decomposition	The organic phenomenon of rotting. The decomposition of organic waste.
depravity	The innate corruption of human nature, due to original sin. A tale of depravity hard to credit.
disassemble	Take (something) to pieces. The piston can be disassembled for transport.
disenfranchise	Deprive of voting rights. A hard core of kids who are disenfranchised and don t feel connected to the school.
erosive	Wearing away by friction. The erosive effects of waves on the shoreline.
fetid	Smelling extremely unpleasant. The fetid water of the marsh.
foul	Commit a foul break the rules. With its sails afoul.
lousy	Very bad. A lousy play.
malodorous	Having an unpleasant smell. Leaking taps and malodorous drains.
molder	Break down.
musty	Lacking freshness or vitality; old-fashioned. A dark musty library.
noisome	Causing or able to cause nausea. Even if a journalist wanted to deliver the noisome truth patriotism and censorship would prevent him.
perishable	Liable to perish; subject to destruction or death or decay. Ballet is the most perishable of arts.
putrescent	Becoming putrid. The odour of putrescent flesh.
putrid	(of organic matter) decaying or rotting and emitting a fetid smell. The putrid smells from the slaughterhouses.
queasy	Nauseous; feeling sick. In the morning he was still pale and queasy.
rancid	Smelling of fermentation or staleness. His columns are just rationales for every kind of rancid prejudice.
rot	Rotten or decayed matter. It was when they moved back to the family home that the rot set in.
sickening	Causing great annoyance or disappointment. A sickening stench.
smell	Smell bad. Lingering kitchen smells.
stale	Make or become stale. Justifications for adverse possession go beyond stale claims.
stinking	Very bad. He was locked in a stinking cell.
underhand	With hand brought forward and up from below shoulder level. Mean revenge committed underhand.
venal	Capable of being corrupted. Their generosity had been at least partly venal.