How to Use ugly in a Sentence

ugly

1 of 2 adjective
  • They avoided what could have been an ugly situation.
  • He has an ugly disposition.
  • So is the same ugly shot chart.
    — Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 27 May 2026
  • A lot of ugly men are just losers.
    — Sam Kriss, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
  • This is the ugliest time of the year.
    — Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2026
  • And is that good, bad, or ugly?
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2025
  • So the big, ugly lamps just… stayed.
    — Sheena Vasani, The Verge, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Don’t freak out if the ideas are ugly.
    — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Yes, her faults are ugly, but so are mine.
    — Ann Manov, Harpers Magazine, 23 June 2026
  • Plus, topped trees just plain look ugly!
    — Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 22 Feb. 2026
  • At worst, well — things could get ugly.
    — Leslie Picker, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2025
  • Well, first of all, this race is a very ugly race.
    — Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 12 June 2026
  • An ugly win is still a win at the end of the day.
    — Evan Massey, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
  • Learn from it all—the good, the bad, and the ugly.
    — Dave Smith, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Even the ugly stuff broke the Knicks’ way.
    — C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 5 May 2026
  • The errors added up to an ugly game.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2026
  • The errors added up to an ugly game.
    — Los Angeles Times, 4 Mar. 2026
  • And those could get ugly in a hurry.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 12 June 2026
  • Their ugly dispute wound up in court.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 21 Mar. 2026
  • That thick, ugly vein, the shrimp feeling, was gone.
    — Sarah Miller, New Yorker, 20 June 2026
  • And that’s likely to get ugly, fast.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 26 Feb. 2026
  • An ugly joy stirred within her.
    — ‘pemi Aguda, Literary Hub, 6 May 2026
  • There’s your ugly face right there, but look around it, either side.
    — David Searcy, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
  • There’s way uglier in Rogers Park alone.
    — Christopher Borrelli, Chicago Tribune, 6 Feb. 2026
  • Then fix the ugliest moment first.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 27 May 2026
  • No, because my cousins are ugly.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2026
  • At first, the results were ugly.
    — Becky Sullivan, NPR, 27 June 2026
  • Those big ugly sumbitches are tasty.
    — Matt Reigle Outkick, FOXNews.com, 3 June 2026
  • None of this means that the new Sentra is ugly.
    — New Atlas, 20 June 2026
  • The get downright ugly when Texas can't score.
    — Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 31 Jan. 2026

ugly

2 of 2 adverb
  • But here’s where things got ugly fast.
    — Ryan Brennan march 20, Miami Herald, 20 Mar. 2026
  • But as the beer flowed and hours passed by, some of the scenes turned ugly.
    — Washington Post, 11 July 2021
  • As ugly as the win was, all of the Bengals’ goals are still in front of them.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 24 Dec. 2022
  • And women are forced to play ugly to survive in that kind of world and with those kinds of men.
    — Henry Chandonnet, Peoplemag, 8 Aug. 2023
  • Also, don’t feel bad pulling out live plants that look ugly and putting them in the compost pile.
    — Marni Jameson, orlandosentinel.com, 19 Mar. 2021
  • Love them or hate them, there's no denying that the ugly-cute rubber clogs are back in a big way.
    — Amanda Tarlton, USA TODAY, 29 Sep. 2020
  • Saban likes to say that there’s nothing worse for a team than losing ugly.
    — Joseph Goodman | [email protected], al, 15 Oct. 2020
  • This one might not get as ugly as some of the past Bears-Packers prime-time games have.
    — Dan Wiederer, chicagotribune.com, 28 Nov. 2020
  • The withdrawal may also turn ugly and that the old threats may resurface.
    — Dr. Ewelina U. Ochab, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2021
  • But if Arizona has trouble moving the ball, things could get ugly fast.
    — Bob McManaman, The Arizona Republic, 9 Sep. 2021
  • So things may look ugly at times, but this is the type of game in which superior talent gets you a win.
    — Stephen Means, cleveland, 25 Nov. 2020
  • This hang nail of a human kissed the ass of a bully who called his wife ugly and accused his dad of murder!
    — Todd J. Gillman, Dallas News, 25 May 2021
  • If not, or if the replacements don’t step up, life could get ugly quickly for Harsin.
    — Nubyjas Wilborn | [email protected], al, 18 July 2022
  • As ugly as their record is, the Chargers are better than most 2-7 clubs.
    — Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 17 Nov. 2020
  • The book on the Tigers this season is to make the game as ugly as possible, and then hope for the best.
    — Joseph Goodman | [email protected], al, 16 Jan. 2020
  • Grabbing a seat at the bar becomes ugly-competitive as the night wears on.
    — Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2022
  • But Chris Beard teams have a way of making their opponents win ugly.
    — Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2022
  • Both teams played ugly in the first half, each shooting below 40% with 11 turnovers.
    — Nick Suss, USA TODAY, 16 Feb. 2022
  • If there is a messy Twitter exchange in your feed or an online forum that got ugly, keep it up there.
    — Paul Blanchard, Rolling Stone, 2 Nov. 2021
  • The Chiefs played ugly last week, giving up 28 points to Denver.
    — Los Angeles Times, 15 Dec. 2022
  • This game is downright ugly early, and that seems to help the undersized Aggies.
    — Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 17 Jan. 2026
  • During the past year, there have undoubtedly been moments when the world has seemed like a place bereft of beauty, ugly even.
    — Harper's BAZAAR, 26 Apr. 2021
  • Georgia now gets set for rival Florida, in a grudge match that could turn ugly for the Gators.
    — Paul Myerberg, USA TODAY, 25 Oct. 2021
  • But the Galaxy have scored just three goals of its own over that span, leading to criticism the team is winning ugly.
    — Kevin Baxter, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2022
  • Sweat stains can ruin the look and feel of your shirts, leaving the underarms stiff from product build-up and soiled with ugly yellow stains.
    — Jolie Kerr, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 July 2022
  • What makes a lot of these houses so ugly is that they were built for evil billionaire money men who do nothing but scroll Raya and bet on sports.
    — Anne Victoria Clark, Vulture, 31 Oct. 2025
  • Some travelers called it ugly, while others admired its unique appearance.
    — Hadley Hitson, Nashville Tennessean, 25 Aug. 2025
  • Just ugly all the way around; even a chunk of the total homer crowd that haunts Suns Twitter during games seemed to tune out early.
    — Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 13 May 2022
  • What matters most is whether Cronin is the right choice for the Ducks, who are at a crucial point of a messy and sometimes ugly rebuild.
    — Helene Elliott, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2023
  • The protests started peacefully during the day, but once night fell, the scene again turned ugly, with tear gas and 307 more arrests.
    — Keith Bierygolick, Cincinnati.com, 1 June 2020

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ugly.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: