English → Latin
“dreadful” in Latin
terribilisfrightful, dreadful, terrible, horriblehorribilishorrible, terrible, dreadful, fearfulhorrendushorrible, horrendous, horrific, horrid, dreadful, dreaded, frightful, awfulatrōxfierce, savage, bloody; heinous, cruel, severe; terrible, frightening, dreadfulimmānisimmense, enormous, huge, vast; brutal, inhuman, frightful, savagefoedustreaty, compact, alliance, truce, league; agreement, bond, contract, compact, pact, pledge, conditions, terms; covenantdīrusfearful; ominous; dreadful, detestabletruxwild, rough, harsh, savage, fierce, ferocious; grim, sternincrēdibilisunbelievable, incrediblestupiditāssenselessness, dullness, stupidity
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
dreadful
terribilis (causing fright; terrificus is poetical only): horribilis: horrendus (causing horrour): atrox (fearful, frightful; e.g., death, bloodshed): immanis (monstrous, quite unnatural, cruel; e.g., animal, deed, character): foedus (causing indignation, abominable; e.g., projects, war, fire, or conflagration): dirus (dire): trux (causing men to shudder; e.g., of looks): incredibilis (that can’t be conceived, e.g., stupidity, stupiditas): to be the bearer of some dreadful news, miros terrores afferre ad aliquem.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for dreadful?
- The usual Latin words for “dreadful” are terribilis, horribilis, horrendus; also atrōx, immānis, foedus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.