adj., -er, -est.
- Evil by nature and in practice: "this wicked man Hitler, the repository and embodiment of many forms of soul-destroying hatred" (Winston S. Churchill).
- Playfully malicious or mischievous: a wicked prank; a critic's wicked wit.
- Severe and distressing: a wicked cough; a wicked gash; wicked driving conditions.
- Highly offensive; obnoxious: a wicked stench.
- Slang. Strikingly good, effective, or skillful: a wicked curve ball; a wicked imitation.
Used as an intensive: "a ... body suit, which she describes as wicked comfortable" (Nathan Cobb).
[Middle English, alteration of wicke, ultimately from Old English wicca, sorcerer. See witch.]
wickedly wick'ed·ly adv.wickedness wick'ed·ness n.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
