Definitions

sordid

[sawr-did] / ˈsɔr dɪd /

ADJECTIVE

dirty, bad, low

Synonyms

STRONGEST

disreputable nasty shameful sleazy squalid vile

WEAK

abject avaricious base black calculated corrupt covetous debauched degenerate degraded despicable dowdy filthy foul grasping grubby ignoble impure low-down mean mercenary miserable miserly poor scurvy seedy self-seeking selfish servile shabby slovenly slummy small small-minded unclean uncleanly ungenerous venal vicious wretched

Antonyms

STRONGEST

clean decent good kind nice reputable respectable

WEAK

honorable wonderful

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

For a growing number of online sleuths, there is a booming business in peddling outlandish answers to those and other sordid questions raised by the trove of newly released files.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 7, 2026

Long before his role in the Epstein case came to light, Brunel already had a sordid reputation in the fashion world.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 19, 2026

Bridger was described by those who knew him as "always confident, courteous and charming" but when police seized his computer, a sordid secret was revealed.

From BBC • Feb. 13, 2026

The best evidence of that sordid policy comes from Kissinger’s own National Security Council files, including near-verbatim transcripts of his face-to-face negotiations with communist leaders.

From Salon • Nov. 1, 2025

Mammachi wrote to him regularly, with detailed descriptions of her sordid squabbles with her husband and her worries about Ammu’s future.

From "The God of Small Things" by Arundhati Roy

Vocabulary lists containing sordid

1984

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Grade 12, List 2

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Heart of Darkness

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