rotten
gb/ɹˈɑtən/ us/ɹˈɑtən/
A2
English
~ 6800
Senses
0 senses
adjective
A2
property
1
decayed or spoiled, especially food
Decayed or spoiled so that it smells bad, tastes bad, or you should not eat or use it.
Usage pattern:
[food / organic matter] is rotten
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use "broken" instead of "rotten" for food (e.g. *"The meat is broken"*). Use "rotten" or "spoiled" for food that has gone bad, and "broken" for objects or machines that do not work.
Synonyms
spoiled (Common for food that has gone bad; slightly more neutral and technical-sounding than "rotten".)
|
decayed (Often used for teeth, wood, or bodies; can sound slightly more formal or scientific than "rotten".)
Antonyms
fresh (Describes food or organic matter that is recently produced or picked and not spoiled.)
|
wholesome (Emphasizes that food is good, safe, and healthy to eat, the opposite of rotten or harmful.)
Collocations
rotten fruit
|rotten meat
|rotten eggs
|go rotten
|rotten smell
|rotten tooth
Themes
daily life
|health
|nature
|food_drink
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- We had to throw away the chicken because it was rotten.
- A horrible smell came from the bag of rotten vegetables.
- The dentist said I needed a filling in my rotten tooth.
- The fallen tree was so rotten that it broke apart in my hands.
- They discovered a pile of rotten leaves at the bottom of the compost bin.
Learner examples
- The milk is rotten, so please don’t drink it.
- These apples are soft and rotten inside.
- There is a rotten egg smell in the fridge.
- The bread went rotten after one week.
- He threw the rotten fruit in the trash.
adjective
B1
property
2
very bad in quality or experience
Very bad in quality or as an experience, for example a bad film, bad weather, or a bad day.
Usage pattern:
a rotten [thing / time / experience]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse this sense with the literal "decayed" sense and avoid using it for experiences or quality. Remember that "rotten" is very common to describe bad days, weather, films, or services, not only food.
Synonyms
terrible (Very close in meaning; slightly more general and common in many contexts than "rotten".)
|
awful (Similar strong negative feeling, often emotional; can sound a bit more dramatic or emotional than "rotten".)
Antonyms
great (Informal, strongly positive evaluation, opposite of calling something rotten.)
|
excellent (Stronger and more formal positive evaluation of quality, opposite of "very bad".)
Collocations
rotten weather
|a rotten day
|a rotten film
|rotten service
|a rotten time
|rotten experience
Themes
daily life
|emotions
|entertainment
|daily_life
|arts_entertainment
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- We had a really rotten holiday because it rained the whole time.
- The service at that restaurant is rotten, so I’m not going back.
- I thought it was a rotten movie, slow and badly acted.
- She’s had a rotten week at work and just wants to rest.
- That was a rotten game; our team played terribly.
Learner examples
- I had a rotten day at work.
- The weather is rotten today; it is cold and wet.
- We watched a rotten movie last night.
- He said the food at that place is rotten, so he never goes there.
- She felt bad because she gave him a rotten birthday present.
adjective
B1
property
3
unkind or unfair toward someone
Very unkind or unfair to someone, for example in how you act or what you say.
Usage pattern:
[someone] is rotten to [someone]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes use only "bad" for behavior ("He is bad to me"). In this context, "rotten", "mean", or "unkind" are more natural for describing how someone treats another person.
Synonyms
mean (Very close in everyday use, especially for unkind behavior; often slightly more common than "rotten" in this sense.)
|
cruel (Stronger than "rotten", suggests causing real pain or suffering, not just being unfair or impolite.)
Antonyms
kind (General opposite, describing friendly and caring behavior toward others.)
|
fair (Opposite in terms of giving people equal and just treatment.)
Collocations
be rotten to someone
|a rotten thing to do
|a rotten trick
|rotten behavior
|rotten attitude
Themes
emotions
|relationships
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- It was really rotten of you to laugh at her in front of everyone.
- He can be quite rotten to his little brother.
- What a rotten thing to say to someone who’s already upset!
- She felt that her colleagues had been rotten to her all year.
- Don’t be rotten—share your toys with your cousin.
Learner examples
- It was rotten of him to lie to his friends.
- She was rotten to her sister and made her cry.
- That was a rotten thing to do to your team.
- He can be very rotten when he is angry.
- Don’t be rotten; help your friend with his homework.
adjective
B2
property
4
morally corrupt or dishonest
Very bad and dishonest in a moral way, especially when many people in a system or group do wrong things.
Usage pattern:
a rotten [system / institution / organization]
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes only know "corrupt" for systems and governments. "Rotten" adds a strong emotional and moral judgment, and is common in news and opinion writing.
Synonyms
corrupt (Stresses taking money or benefits in a dishonest way, especially in politics or business; slightly more formal and common in news than "rotten".)
|
crooked (Informal; often used for dishonest people in power, especially in politics or business.)
Antonyms
honest (Describes people or actions that do not lie, steal, or cheat, opposite of morally rotten.)
|
upright (More formal; emphasizes strong moral character and integrity, the opposite of being rotten or corrupt.)
Collocations
a rotten system
|rotten to the core
|a rotten regime
|a rotten police force
|rotten institutions
Themes
society
|politics
|law
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- Many people believe the political system is completely rotten.
- The investigation revealed a rotten culture within the company.
- He promised to clean up the rotten local government.
- She argued that the entire organization was rotten to the core.
- A few rotten officials damaged the public’s trust in the police.
Learner examples
- People say the government is rotten and full of lies.
- The company had a rotten culture of cheating customers.
- He thinks the whole system is rotten and must change.
- The report shows a rotten police force that took money from criminals.
- They want to fix the rotten parts of the law.
adjective
informal
B1
state
5
feeling physically very unwell
Feeling very bad in your body, for example when you are sick or very tired.
Usage pattern:
[someone] feels rotten
Common mistake:
Learners sometimes confuse this with emotional meanings like feeling guilty. In this sense, context will usually include sickness, tiredness, or physical symptoms.
Synonyms
awful (Very common in speech for feeling ill; slightly more general and emotional than "rotten".)
|
terrible (Widely used to describe feeling physically very bad; slightly more neutral than the slangy feel of "rotten".)
Antonyms
fine (Common, informal opposite for how you feel physically.)
|
great (Informal, strong positive opposite of feeling rotten.)
Collocations
feel rotten
|look rotten
|a rotten cold
|still feel rotten
Themes
health
|daily life
|body
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- I’ve had the flu all week and I still feel rotten.
- You look rotten—maybe you should go home and rest.
- I ate something bad last night and now I feel rotten.
- He felt rotten after staying up all night to finish the project.
- She woke up feeling rotten, with a headache and sore throat.
Learner examples
- I feel rotten today, so I can’t go to work.
- He looks rotten; I think he is sick.
- After the long flight, we all felt rotten.
- She felt rotten and went to see a doctor.
- He has a cold and feels rotten this morning.
adjective
informal
B1
state
6
feeling very guilty or sorry
Feeling very bad, sorry, or guilty about what you did or about someone’s problem.
Usage pattern:
feel rotten about [something]
Common mistake:
Learners may think "feel rotten" always means physically sick. Check the context: if it is about actions, mistakes, or hurting someone, it usually means feeling guilty or very sorry.
Synonyms
guilty (Directly describes the feeling that you did something wrong; more neutral than the strongly emotional "rotten".)
|
remorseful (More formal and serious; suggests deep and lasting regret.)
Antonyms
untroubled (Describes feeling calm and not worried or guilty about something.)
|
relieved (Describes feeling better after worry or guilt is gone, opposite of continuing to feel rotten.)
Collocations
feel rotten about it
|feel rotten for [someone]
|a rotten feeling
|she felt rotten afterward
Themes
emotions
|relationships
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- I felt rotten about forgetting his birthday.
- She felt rotten for yelling at her kids.
- He still feels rotten about the way he ended the relationship.
- I know you’re trying your best, so please don’t feel rotten about it.
- They all felt rotten after realizing how unfair they had been.
Learner examples
- I feel rotten about what I said to her.
- He felt rotten for not helping his friend.
- She felt rotten after she lied to her parents.
- We all felt rotten when we saw the sad news.
- He does not want you to feel rotten about this mistake.
adjective
informal
B1
property
7
very bad at a skill or activity
Not good at a skill or activity; you do it very badly.
Usage pattern:
[someone] is rotten at [activity]
Common mistake:
Learners often only use "bad at" or "not good at". "Rotten at" is an informal alternative with a stronger negative feeling, common in conversation.
Synonyms
hopeless (Informal; suggests the person is very bad and unlikely to improve.)
|
terrible (Very common general term for being bad at something; slightly more neutral than "rotten".)
Antonyms
good (General opposite, describes basic ability in an activity.)
|
skilled (Stronger opposite, suggests high ability and practice.)
Collocations
rotten at math
|rotten at spelling
|rotten at sports
|rotten at cooking
Themes
education
|work
|daily life
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- I’m rotten at remembering names.
- She says she’s rotten at cooking, so they eat out a lot.
- He was always rotten at math in school.
- They’re great at design but rotten at managing money.
- I’m rotten at small talk and parties make me nervous.
Learner examples
- I am rotten at dancing.
- She is rotten at math but good at art.
- He says he is rotten at cooking.
- My brother is rotten at spelling long words.
- We are rotten at playing this game.
adverb
informal
B2
property
8
very, extremely (informal intensifier)
An informal word meaning "very" or "extremely" used before some adjectives, for example "rotten drunk" (very drunk).
Usage pattern:
rotten [adjective]
Common mistake:
Learners may try to use "rotten" as an intensifier in formal writing. This use is very informal and often sounds old-fashioned or dialectal; in most cases, "very" or "really" is more natural.
Synonyms
very (Neutral and much more common intensifier; can be used in more situations than "rotten".)
|
extremely (Stronger and more formal than "very"; unlike "rotten", it is acceptable in formal writing.)
Antonyms
slightly (Indicates a small degree, opposite of the strong emphasis given by "rotten".)
|
barely (Suggests almost not at all, opposite in strength to an intensifier like "rotten".)
Collocations
rotten drunk
|rotten cold
|rotten tired
Themes
informal
|daily life
|communication
|core_vocabulary
Examples
- He came home rotten drunk after the party.
- It was rotten cold last night, even with the heating on.
- By the end of the hike we were all rotten tired.
- She was rotten scared of failing the exam.
- We were rotten lucky to catch the last train.
Learner examples
- He was rotten drunk after the wedding.
- It is rotten cold outside tonight.
- After the long trip, they were rotten tired.
- She felt rotten scared before the big test.
- We were rotten lucky to get tickets.
Grammar
Expressions
a rotten apple
1/ə ɹˈɑtən ˈæpəl/
idiom
a bad person in a group
One bad person in a group who can cause problems or influence others in a bad way.
Examples
- There are a few rotten apples in every organization.
- The coach said he didn’t want one rotten apple ruining the whole team.
- They fired the rotten apples to protect the company’s reputation.
a rotten deal
1/ə ɹˈɑtən dˈil/
fixed phrase
informal
very unfair treatment or offer
Very unfair treatment or an unfair agreement, especially when someone gets much less than they should.
Examples
- Workers got a rotten deal in the new contract.
- He felt he got a rotten deal in the divorce settlement.
- It’s a rotten deal when interns work hard and aren’t paid at all.
a rotten egg
1/ə ɹˈɑtən ˈɛɡ/
idiom
informal
a badly behaved or dishonest person
A person who behaves badly or dishonestly, especially in a group or among children.
Examples
- Don’t be a rotten egg—play fair with the others.
- There’s always one rotten egg who tries to cheat.
- They decided to remove the rotten egg from the team.
a rotten time
1/ə ɹˈɑtən tˈaɪm/
fixed phrase
informal
a very unpleasant experience
A very bad or unpleasant experience or period of time.
Examples
- She had a rotten time at her old school.
- We had a rotten time on holiday because the hotel was terrible.
- He’s been having a rotten time since he lost his job.
feel rotten
1/fˈil ɹˈɑtən/
fixed phrase
informal
to feel very sick or guilty
To feel very bad, either because you are sick or because you feel very sorry or guilty about something.
Examples
- I feel rotten today, so I’m going to stay in bed.
- She felt rotten about forgetting to call her mother.
- He’s been feeling rotten all week with a bad cold.
rotten luck
1/ɹˈɑtən lˈʌk/
fixed phrase
informal
very bad luck
Very bad luck in a situation.
Examples
- Missing the train by one minute was rotten luck.
- That was rotten luck, losing your phone on the first day of the trip.
- You’ve had rotten luck with jobs this year.
- It’s rotten luck that the train broke down today of all days.
- It was rotten luck that it rained on the only day we were free.
rotten to the core
1/ɹˈɑtən tə ðə kˈɔɹ/
idiom
completely and deeply corrupt
Completely bad and dishonest in a moral way, with no good parts left.
Examples
- She believed the regime was rotten to the core.
- The report showed that the organization was rotten to the core.
- Many voters see the system as rotten to the core and want major change.
rotten weather
1/ɹˈɑtən wˈɛðɚ/
fixed phrase
informal
very bad, unpleasant weather
Very bad weather, for example cold, wet, windy, or stormy.
Examples
- We’ve had rotten weather all week.
- Because of the rotten weather, the match was canceled.
- What rotten weather for a picnic!
spoiled rotten
1/spˈɔɪld ɹˈɑtən/
fixed phrase
informal
treated too well so now spoiled
Given too many gifts or too much freedom, so the person becomes selfish and expects to always get what they want.
Examples
- Their kids are spoiled rotten; they never hear the word no.
- He grew up spoiled rotten and doesn’t know how to work hard.
- She worries that her grandson is being spoiled rotten by his grandparents.