dirty, foul, or squalid degraded; vile; base selfish and grasping: sordid avarice
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2025
sor•did /ˈsɔrdɪd/USA pronunciation
adj.
sor•did•ness, n. [uncountable]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025- morally low;
base;
corrupt:a sordid life; a sordid business deal. - filthy;
squalid:a sordid slum.
sor•did•ness, n. [uncountable]
sor•did
(sôr′did),USA pronunciation adj.
sor′did•ly, adv.
sor′did•ness, n.
- morally ignoble or base;
vile:sordid methods. - meanly selfish, self-seeking, or mercenary.
- dirty or filthy.
- squalid;
wretchedly poor and run-down:sordid housing.
- Latin sordidus, equivalent. to sord(ēs) dirt + -idus -id4
- 1590–1600
sor′did•ness, n.
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged degraded, depraved. See mean 2.
- 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged avaricious, tight, close, stingy.
- 3.See corresponding entry in Unabridged soiled, unclean, foul.
- 1.See corresponding entry in Unabridged honorable.
- 2.See corresponding entry in Unabridged generous.
- 3.See corresponding entry in Unabridged clean.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
'sordid' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Rowlandson
- back-alley
- dirty
- kitchen sink
- mean
- miserable
- scungy
- scuzz
- scuzzy
- seamy
- sleazy
- squalid
- swart