French word

affreusement

Pronunciation

IPA/afʁøzəmɑ̃/

Meaning

  • adverbterribly

Example

Il fait affreusement chaud aujourd'hui.

It is terribly hot today.

Illustration for affreusement (terribly)

More examples

La journée était affreusement longue.

The day was terribly long.

Core concept

A volume knob pushed so far that a sensation dominates the whole impression.

Common phrases

  • affreusement chaud

    terribly hot

  • affreusement long

    terribly long

Similar words

très: Very, simply indicating a high degree.
vraiment: Really, expressing strong affirmation or genuine feeling.
tellement: To such a great degree that it conveys strong emotion or produces a clear result.
trop: To an excessive degree, beyond what is appropriate or acceptable.

Definition in French

Dérivé d'un adjectif servant à indiquer un degré très élevé, s'emploie surtout pour décrire des sensations ou des impressions.

Word origin

Affreusement is formed from the adjective affreux with the adverbial suffix -ment, whose history goes back to Latin mente, meaning 'in a manner'.

Usage tips

  • Affreusement can intensify favorable as well as unfavorable descriptions, so affreusement beau can express strong admiration rather than fear.

Other meanings

  • horriblyadverb
  • frightfullyadverb

Opposites

Related words

  • affreuxterribleadjective
  • affreuseterribleadjective

Word lists with this word