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What is "worst"

Crossword clues for worst

worst
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
worst
I.adjective
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
assume the worst (=think that the worst possible thing had happened)
▪ When it got to midnight and Paul was still not back, I began to assume the worst.
least worst
▪ Often it’s a question of choosing the least worst option.
make sth the best/worst/most expensive etc
▪ Over 80,000 people attended, making it the biggest sporting event in the area.
of the worst/best etc kind
▪ This is hypocrisy of the worst kind.
prepared for the worst (=expected something very bad)
▪ There was no news and we were prepared for the worst.
sb's worst nightmare (=the worst possible situation)
▪ The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease was farming's worst nightmare.
sb’s worst/greatest fear
▪ Her worst fear was never seeing her children again.
the best/worst kind
▪ Not knowing what had happened to her was the worst kind of torture.
the best/worst part
▪ The worst part was having to work even when it was raining.
the very best/latest/worst etc
▪ We only use the very best ingredients.
the worst hit
▪ The south of the country is the worst hit by the recession.
the worst moment
▪ Standing on the edge waiting to do your bungee jump is the worst moment.
the worst offender
▪ Among causes of air pollution, car exhaust fumes may be the worst offender.
the worst recession
▪ Colombia is going through its worst recession in decades.
the worst scandal (=the biggest or most shocking)
▪ Total losses resulting from India's worst financial scandal amounted to Rs31,000 million.
the worst-case/worst scenario (=the worst thing that might happen)
▪ The worst-case scenario is that it is already too late to do anything about global warming.
worst excesses
▪ He lived through some of the worst excesses of apartheid in South Africa.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ NOUN
aspect
▪ I think many of the worst aspects of rock have now resurfaced in rave: the macho, aggressive energy.
▪ The worst aspect of Hinduism is undoubtedly the caste system, which kept the population cooped up in so many separate compartments.
▪ The worst aspects of co-ordination, however, were central-local relations within the Soviet hierarchy.
▪ The best and the worst aspects of having friends edit your work are the same: they like you.
▪ That was the absolutely worst aspect of the Bug's crash-landing into her life.
▪ The continued existence of the private sector has allowed those with sufficient resources to avoid the worst aspects of the state system.
▪ Male speaker the worst aspect of Leatherslade farm was that so many took their gloves off.
▪ One of the worst aspects of delay in litigation is waiting for a trial date.
case
▪ Although she definitely did suffer from claustrophobia, Sylvia was by no means the worst case I have seen.
▪ Even in the worst case, there will still be four blank spaces between columns.
▪ He says it's one of the worst cases he's seen.
▪ It was several times worse than the worst case the computer models had predicted.
▪ Its bite produces a worm which swells up the blood vessels, causing ulcers and, in the worst cases, blindness.
▪ In the worst case, such violence could take the form of interstate strife.
▪ Experts have described it as the worst case to date of pesticide contamination in Britain.
▪ The worst case scenario is a sausage biscuit with egg, hash browns and orange juice combination.
day
▪ Perhaps the worst day of all Sunday.
▪ But the worst day of all was the day that Bill took the stand himself.
▪ Mr Howard painted a picture of industrial unrest under Labour rivalling the worst days of the 1970s.
▪ This is the worst day of my life.
▪ The worst day was when we were in Manchester, going to the eye doctor.
▪ Probably the worst day of that year, though a typical one, was a particularly hot day in August.
▪ The best and worst day of Jenny's life arrived two months later.
enemy
▪ Like all good conspiracy theories, the polio vaccine theory's originators are its worst enemies.
▪ The worst enemy here is hunger.
▪ In other words, we are our own worst enemy.
▪ People are their own worst enemies.
▪ I hope you can enjoy it, but if not, give it to your worst enemy.
▪ To what extent would she say she was her own worst enemy?
▪ Remember grit and dirt are a carpet's worst enemies.
▪ I say, Hey, Legs, you and Schultz, you supposed to be the worst enemies.
excesses
▪ It wallows in the worst excesses of sentimentality and adopts a moral tone that condemns and condones misbehaviour in the same breath.
▪ The organization becomes a drag-net for the worst excesses of commercial endeavour.
▪ Females will have felt an urge to tackle their partner's worst excesses.
▪ It had proved a good move as the sector had avoided the worst excesses of the building slump.
▪ At worst, they are a facade hiding the worst excesses of management.
▪ As a result, the worst excesses of feudal exploitation carried on unchecked.
▪ Such colleagues tend to be great achievers, but you have to restrain their worst excesses.
▪ This uneasy half way house is fair game for the worst excesses of journalism.
fear
▪ A week later my worst fears were confirmed.
▪ Sure enough, to confirm our worst fears, the wind grew stronger in the evening.
▪ Alcuin's worst fears were not fulfilled until 806.
▪ The audit demonstrated that many of their worst fears were true.
▪ One of her worst fears is that folk will shun her because of what's happened.
▪ Or would it confirm their worst fears?
▪ A Guardian student survey published this week confirms the university law schools' worst fears.
▪ But now, my worst fears have been borne out.
kind
▪ Every one of them sounded as though it had been written by the worst kind of shit.
▪ But this looks like racial bias, it smells like racial bias, it is racial bias of the worst kind.
▪ A handful of poxy tents sold greasy lentil pilaf to the worst kind of industry lackey.
▪ Was I not going forth as the worst kind of pretender?
▪ The worst kind of burn gives painful blisters and general skin damage within about an hour after exposure.
▪ Would that not be fiscal philandering of the worst kind?
▪ Here it was the worst kind of exploitation.
nightmare
▪ This is a macabre impersonation of a white racist's worst nightmare or crowd-baiting at its most mindless.
▪ We thought maybe our worst nightmare came true.
▪ Few suffer the agony of Johanna Young's parents and find that their worst nightmare has become a reality.
▪ They eventually suffered from an embarrassment of riches: they laughingly killed all their enemies and created their worst nightmare.
▪ It was an engineer's worst nightmare.
▪ The Halloween night fight at London's Earls Court was hyped as the worst nightmare for one of the boxers.
▪ The scene he saw there confirmed his worst nightmares.
▪ It couldn't, it shouldn't be happening, but it was ... Her worst nightmare had come true.
offender
▪ And patients are the worst offenders.
▪ Uneaten food and other dead organic materials left in the tank are the worst offenders in pollution of the water.
▪ In my experience, those long conditioned by Centralism are the worst offenders.
▪ One of the worst offenders, the Polam lighting factory at Rzeszow, has already been shut down.
▪ In this connection some scientists are by far the worst offenders.
▪ The worst offenders are the disinfectants and pesticides.
▪ The crack cocaine epidemic has passed, and some of the worst offenders are imprisoned, mellowed or dead.
part
▪ And the worst part was, everyone else seemed to understand it and strode out to the quay full of knowledgeable confidence.
▪ The worst part was the sound.
▪ We decided the deception was the worst part of it and agreed to give honesty a try.
▪ The screams were the worst part.
▪ It simply is the worst part of their life.
▪ The path here can be very wet, but planks have been laid down over the worst parts.
▪ She lived most of her life in the worst parts of Washington.
recession
▪ Britain in the early 1990s appears to be on the precipice of the worst recession since the 1930s.
▪ The worst recession since the l930s was followed by a boom.
▪ Above all, both countries are facing their worst recessions for many years.
▪ Although interest rates and inflation were both falling, Britain had to struggle through one of the worst recessions since the war.
▪ The increase comes during one of the worst recessions to hit the motor industry since the war.
▪ The report painted a generally optimistic picture of Britain continuing to recover from the worst recession since 1945.
▪ Male speaker Recessions come and go, but this is the worst recession I've seen.
record
▪ The worst record for absence while on leave of any of the three battalions, the Brigadier had grumbled.
▪ At 16-41, the Warriors have the worst record in the Western Conference.
▪ In water quality and air quality, Texas has the worst record of any big state.
▪ The 1977-78 Washington Bullets won the title with a regular-season mark of 44-38, the worst record of all championship teams.
▪ But they've lost eight home matches this season, one of the worst records in the division.
▪ With Sosa, the Cubs are 100-169 since June 9, 1999, the worst record in the majors.
▪ Read in studio Gloucester Prison has the worst record in the country for overcrowding, according to a new league table.
▪ North Yorkshire has one of the worst records for the illegal poisoning and shooting of wild creatures.
thing
▪ The worst thing about it was that green catsuit.
▪ For these people, that inflation was the worst thing in the world.
▪ But the worst thing they did to him was to brand him a traitor.
▪ It would be the worst thing to happen to me if I had to leave this place.
▪ Perhaps that was the worst thing that could happen to a human being.
▪ It turned out to be the next worst thing.
▪ Being the last to know isn't actually the worst thing a betrayed wide can experience.
▪ And the worst thing was that I really had little choice but to bow to their wishes.
time
▪ Him, with him: the worst man in the worst place at the worst time.
▪ Shaving before you get breakfast is the worst time.
▪ He threw one the very worst time, up on top of the wall, and the other kids all shunned away.
▪ But even in the worst times there will be leadership.
▪ It's probably the worst time in the world to tell you, but there you are.
▪ We went over a typical week in her life, hour by hour, looking for the best and the worst times.
▪ The worst times I've ever endured were with a tax-dodger in Castletown.
▪ Glenn Jeffers was a helicopter crewman throughout 1968, one of the worst times to serve with a combat division.
year
▪ It was the worst years he had with his wife.
▪ In the worst year, 1961, more than half a million dolphins were killed.
▪ For retailers it was the worst year on record and consumer spending is at its lowest since World War Two.
▪ It's the worst year because it has been difficult to persuade distinguished film-makers to attend with their latest work.
▪ It was the worst year of Harriet's life, and she was not able to care that people avoided them.
▪ Her self-proclaimed worst year has seen two separations and one divorce among her four children.
▪ In one of the worst years on record many nests have been robbed or destroyed and adult birds shot or poisoned.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
at your best/worst/most effective etc
be your own worst enemy
▪ Many drivers are their own worst enemy -- driving too close, driving too fast, all the usual faults.
▪ My mother was her own worst enemy. She knew she was ill but she did nothing to help herself.
▪ In other words, we are our own worst enemy.
▪ My father was his own worst enemy.
▪ People are their own worst enemies.
▪ Players can be real snobs about names, too, so they are their own worst enemies.
▪ To what extent would she say she was her own worst enemy?
▪ You could say that Gilly is her own worst enemy.
bring out the best/worst in sb
▪ Ingram always seems to bring out the best in his players.
▪ And Vince was obviously a great coach; he brought out the best in his team and whoever played him.
▪ But the Washington Wizards have a way of bringing out the best in their opponents.
▪ But, says Markert, there is something about one-way communication that can also bring out the worst in people.
▪ Campaigns seem to bring out the worst in Bob Dole.
▪ It brings out the best in us.
▪ Maybe something like they tend to bring out the best in us.
▪ So, to bring out the best in your cooking make sure you use the purest soy sauce, Kikkoman Soy Sauce.
▪ Yet it was not an unsuccessful attempt to bring out the best in his audience.
come off best/better/worst etc
▪ Alec Davidson, for example, was one of those who came off worst.
▪ Bullock comes off best because her complaining seems so valid.
▪ His foster-child comes off best, but in addition each of two nurses receives a tenth of his estate.
▪ It may seem, so far, that in terms of clearly defined benefits, the client comes off best out of the deal.
▪ Prior to that Meath had come off best when they accounted for Down in the 1990 league decider.
▪ The lightning, it seemed to Lydia, had undoubtedly come off best in that encounter.
▪ The problem is that history sometimes comes off better.
fear the worst
▪ Fearing the worst, police have called in reinforcements to help control the crowds.
▪ After I hadn't heard from him for several hours, I began to fear the worst.
▪ Rescuers feared the worst for the men trapped in the mine.
▪ I knew I was being irrational but I began to fear the worst.
▪ Mind you, I feared the worst for this year's crop of pantomimes.
▪ Only then did we begin to fear the worst.
▪ Rumours about impending changes will occur anyway, and staff not fully informed are likely to fear the worst.
▪ Then they called police and stayed up all night -- fearing the worst.
sb's worst fears were realized
▪ My worst fears were realized when I saw the test questions.
▪ His worst fears were realized and he was arrested.
the biggest/worst etc (sth) yet
▪ And the worst was yet to come.
▪ Her third night here and it had been the worst one yet.
▪ No, the worst ... Yet is she listening now?
▪ That was the worst task yet, as Psyche saw when she approached the waterfall.
▪ The decision opens the biggest policy rift yet between Holyrood and Westminster.
▪ The two have returned from a disastrous holiday in Greecebut the worst is yet to come.
think the best/worst of sb
▪ Ellie's the type of person that always thinks the best of people.
▪ He thought the worst of Mitch and clearly thought that left to herself she would ring London at once.
▪ I was so ready to think the worst of him, she wailed inwardly.
▪ My immediate reaction, whether it be a man or a woman, is to think the worst of them.
▪ The prospect of Guy leaving, thinking the worst of her, was unbearable.
▪ Why should you think the worst of me?
▪ You always think the worst of me.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ First thing in the morning is by far the worst time to ask Dad a favour.
▪ I was always the worst student in the class.
▪ In my opinion, that's the worst movie of all time.
▪ It's by far the worst neighborhood in the whole city.
▪ The doctor said it was one of the worst cases of food poisoning he'd ever seen.
▪ This is the worst musical I've ever been to.
▪ UN workers were withdrawn from the western areas, where the worst bloodshed has occurred.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ But only one record of last year's storms - the worst for years - is in the public domain.
▪ On the eve of the council the worst of horrors was revealed.
▪ The year following the elimination of the distribution centers was, by employee consensus, the worst the company had ever endured.
▪ Then you would know when you saw the chap in the 1984 Cortina he was the company's worst driver.
II.adverb
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ VERB
affect
▪ They target remote farms in the south-west with Dumfriesshire and the Stewartry worst affected.
▪ Hackney and Tower Hamlets are among the boroughs worst affected by shortages.
▪ After Frankfurt, the cities worst affected by mob violence are Hamburg, Berlin and Munich.
▪ More than half of those worst affected had aggressive and anti-social tendencies.
▪ The heartlands of political opposition to the government, where there is no precedent of famine, have been worst affected.
hit
▪ For example, in Ovamboland, the northern region, worst hit by the war, drop-out rates at primary school are highest.
▪ The P-40 was probably the fighter worst hit.
▪ That would mean taking readings in homes and in streets in parts of the city worst hit by the car.
▪ Darlington borough council, Wear Valley and Sedgefield district councils said they were worst hit by the spending limits.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Chris is the worst-dressed man in the office.
▪ It was the worst written book I've ever read.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ After Frankfurt, the cities worst affected by mob violence are Hamburg, Berlin and Munich.
▪ Our staff who were older felt it worst.
▪ The tobacconist shops fared worst, hit by the fall in shopper-numbers on high streets.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Worst

Worst \Worst\, n. That which is most bad or evil; the most severe, pernicious, calamitous, or wicked state or degree.

The worst is not So long as we can say, This is the worst.
--Shak.

He is always sure of finding diversion when the worst comes to the worst.
--Addison.

Worst

Worst \Worst\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Worsted; p. pr. & vb. n. Worsting.] [See Worse, v. t. &

  1. ] To gain advantage over, in contest or competition; to get the better of; to defeat; to overthrow; to discomfit.

    The . . . Philistines were worsted by the captivated ark.
    --South.

Worst

Worst \Worst\, v. i. To grow worse; to deteriorate. [R.] ``Every face . . . worsting.''
--Jane Austen.

Worst

Worst \Worst\, a., superl. of Bad. [OE. werst, worste, wurste, AS. wyrst, wierst, wierrest. See Worse, a.] Bad, evil, or pernicious, in the highest degree, whether in a physical or moral sense. See Worse. ``Heard so oft in worst extremes.''
--Milton.

I have a wife, the worst that may be.
--Chaucer.

If thou hadst not been born the worst of men, Thou hadst been a knave and flatterer.
--Shak.

Worst

Bad \Bad\ (b[a^]d), a. [Compar. Worse (w[^u]s); superl. Worst (w[^u]st).] [Probably fr. AS. b[ae]ddel hermaphrodite; cf. b[ae]dling effeminate fellow.] Wanting good qualities, whether physical or moral; injurious, hurtful, inconvenient, offensive, painful, unfavorable, or defective, either physically or morally; evil; vicious; wicked; -- the opposite of good; as, a bad man; bad conduct; bad habits; bad soil; bad air; bad health; a bad crop; bad news.

Note: Sometimes used substantively.

The strong antipathy of good to bad.
--Pope.

Syn: Pernicious; deleterious; noxious; baneful; injurious; hurtful; evil; vile; wretched; corrupt; wicked; vicious; imperfect. [1913 Webster] ||

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
worst

Old English wyrresta, from Proto-Germanic *wers-ista- (cognates: Old Saxon wirsista, Old Norse verstr, Old Frisian wersta, Old High German wirsisto), superlative of PIE *wers- (1) "to confuse, mix up" (see war (n.)). Phrase in the worst way (1839) is from American English sense of "most severely." The adverb is Old English wyrst; the noun, "that which is most evil or bad," is from late 14c.

worst

"damage, inflict loss upon," c.1600, from worst (adj.). Meaning "defeat in argument" is from 1650s. Related: Worsted; worsting.

Wiktionary
worst

  1. 1 (en-superlativebad) 2 # Most inferior; doing the least good. 3 # Most unfavorable. 4 # Most harmful or severe. 5 # Most ill. 6 # (non-gloss definition: Used with the definite article and an implied noun): something that is worst. adv. In the worst way: most badly, most ill. n. something or someone that is the worst v

  2. 1 (context archaic transitive English) To make worse. 2 (context dated intransitive English) To grow worse; to deteriorate. 3 (context rare English) To outdo or defeat, especially in battle.

Related phrases:
WordNet
worst

adj. (superlative of `bad') most wanting in quality or value or condition; "the worst player on the team"; "the worst weather of the year" [ant: best]

worst

  1. n. the least favorable outcome; "the worst that could happen"

  2. the greatest damage or wickedness of which one is capable; "the invaders did their worst"; "so pure of heart that his worst is another man's best"

  3. the weakest effort or poorest achievement one is capable of; "it was the worst he had ever done on a test" [ant: best]

  4. adv. to the highest degree of inferiority or badness; "She suffered worst of all"; "schools were the worst hit by government spending cuts"; "the worst dressed person present"

  5. v. defeat thoroughly; "He mopped up the floor with his opponents" [syn: pip, mop up, whip, rack up]

worst

See bad

bad

  1. adj. having undesirable or negative qualities; "a bad report card"; "his sloppy appearance made a bad impression"; "a bad little boy"; "clothes in bad shape"; "a bad cut"; "bad luck"; "the news was very bad"; "the reviews were bad"; "the pay is bad"; "it was a bad light for reading"; "the movie was a bad choice" [ant: good]

  2. very intense; "a bad headache"; "in a big rage"; "had a big (or bad) shock"; "a bad earthquake"; "a bad storm" [syn: big]

  3. feeling physical discomfort or pain (`tough' is occasionally used colloquially for `bad'); "my throat feels bad"; "she felt bad all over"; "he was feeling tough after a restless night" [syn: tough]

  4. (of foodstuffs) not in an edible or usable condition; "bad meat"; "a refrigerator full of spoilt food" [syn: spoiled, spoilt]

  5. not capable of being collected; "a bad (or uncollectible) debt" [syn: uncollectible]

  6. below average in quality or performance; "a bad chess player"; "a bad recital"

  7. nonstandard; "so-called bad grammar"

  8. not financially safe or secure; "a bad investment"; "high risk investments"; "anything that promises to pay too much can't help being risky"; "speculative business enterprises" [syn: insecure, risky, high-risk, speculative]

  9. physically unsound or diseased; "has a bad back"; "a bad heart"; "bad teeth"; "an unsound limb"; "unsound teeth" [syn: unfit, unsound]

  10. capable of harming; "bad habits"; "bad air"; "smoking is bad for you"

  11. keenly sorry or regretful; "felt bad about letting the team down"; "was sorry that she had treated him so badly"; "felt bad about breaking the vase" [syn: sorry]

  12. characterized by wickedness or immorality; "led a very bad life" [syn: immoral]

  13. reproduced fraudulently; "like a bad penny..."; "a forged twenty dollar bill" [syn: forged]

  14. not working properly; "a bad telephone connection"; "a defective appliance" [syn: defective]

  15. [also: worst, worse]

bad

  1. n. that which is below standard or expectations as of ethics or decency; "take the bad with the good" [syn: badness] [ant: good, good]

  2. [also: worst, worse]

bad

  1. adv. with great intensity (`bad' is a nonstandard variant for `badly'); "the injury hurt badly"; "the buildings were badly shaken"; "it hurts bad"; "we need water bad" [syn: badly]

  2. very much; strongly; "I wanted it badly enough to work hard for it"; "the cables had sagged badly"; "they were badly in need of help"; "he wants a bicycle so bad he can taste it" [syn: badly]

  3. [also: worst, worse]

Related phrases:
Wikipedia
Worst (manga)

Worst is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Hiroshi Takahashi. The plot revolves around a group of teenage boys who fight their way through the notorious high school, Suzuran.

The manga was first published by Shōnen Champion in 2002. The series is currently being serialized in Japan and has been collected into twenty-five tankōbon volumes. In North America, Digital Manga Publishing has released only three volumes, with the last graphic novel released in November 2004. The series is currently on hiatus but Digital Manga Publishing has said that if enough fans show interest, they will consider continuing the series. Worst is infamous for not having any female characters.

Hiroshi Takahashi had also released Worst Gaiden, which is the short collection of sides stories for the Worst series.

Related phrases:

Usage examples of "worst".

There I was, having the worst attack of acrophobia in history, and then wham!

When, sometime ago, I consulted you in regard to my affliction, bronchitis, I was indeed fearing the worst.

All I would do was annoy Sir Umbrage, who was already in an apprehensive enough mood, and the other knights and squires in the company who seemed to regard my presence as something of an aberration at best, an annoyance at worst.

With singular justice Providence has ticketed him as appropriately as his worst enemy would have dared to do.

Moreover, Padmasambhava warns that without having developed a high degree of attentional stability and vividness, even if one apprehends the nature of awareness, it remains only an object of intellectual understanding, leading merely to philosophical discourse at best and dogmatism at worst.

On the brink of attrition, Vee uttered a choked cry, convulsed by the worst breakout contractions Rimon had ever seen.

Ed Banning called, she always answered the telephone expecting the worst.

He had seen her work the barque with her shining black head bent low over the worsted likeness of the Holy Family.

When Lady Bellamy arrived on the following morning, she found him marching up and down the dining-room, in the worst of his bad tempers, and that was a very shocking temper indeed.

Right now, Bern thought, mockery might be the best they could hope for, not the worst.

And worst of all, they never spoke or laughed, and never smiled because they had no faces at all to smile with, but only a suggestive blankness where a face ought to be.

But his worst adventure--he seemed shy in telling it--was when he was caught without snow-shoes in an early fall blizzard, and crossed unknowingly a bottomless half-frozen sphagnum swamp which heaved under his tread and made him vomit up his soul.

Staring at the floor and the black wing-tipped shoes, glowing under ages of wax, her eyes moved up the black worsted trousers shining at the knees, to the breviary held under the same arm as the straw hat, and up to the face.

The Briefless one, muttering that the worst of mixing with journalists was that if you did not watch yourself, you fell into their ways, drank his whisky in silence.

Their furry bodies and habits of burrowing into the shelter of the ground were protecting them from the worst of the cold.