egregious

Etymology

From Latin ēgregius, from e- (“out of”), + grex (“flock”), + English adjective suffix -ous, from Latin suffix -osus (“full of”); reflecting the positive connotations of "standing out from the flock".

adj

  1. Conspicuous, exceptional, outstanding; usually in a negative sense.
    The student has made egregious errors on the examination.
    16thC, Christopher Marlowe, Ignoto, I cannot cross my arms, or sigh "Ah me," / "Ah me forlorn!" egregious foppery! / I cannot buss thy fill, play with thy hair, / Swearing by Jove, "Thou art most debonnaire!"
    22 March 2012, Scott Tobias, AV Club The Hunger Gameshttp://www.avclub.com/articles/the-hunger-games,71293/ When the goal is simply to be as faithful as possible to the material—as if a movie were a marriage, and a rights contract the vow—the best result is a skillful abridgment, one that hits all the important marks without losing anything egregious.
    She's sitting opposite a window that's gently breezing into her face, wafting her hair into cover-girl perfection ... It's a little moment that seems to encapsulate her appeal: ... her gorgeousness being so egregious that even breezes oblige with their tousle-fanning effects ... 21 January 2014, Hermione Hoby, “Julia Roberts interview for August: Osage County – 'I might actually go to hell for this ...': Julia Roberts reveals why her violent, Oscar-nominated performance in August: Osage County made her feel 'like a terrible person' [print version: 'I might actually go to hell for this ...' (18 January 2014, p. R4)]”, in The Daily Telegraph (Review)
  2. Outrageously bad; shocking.

Attribution / Disclaimer All definitions come directly from Wiktionary using the Wiktextract library. We do not edit or curate the definitions for any words, if you feel the definition listed is incorrect or offensive please suggest modifications directly to the source (wiktionary/egregious), any changes made to the source will update on this page periodically.