From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishnastynas‧ty /ˈnɑːsti $ ˈnæsti/ ●●● S2 adjective (comparative nastier, superlative nastiest) 1 behaviourUNKIND nasty behaviour or remarks are extremely unkind and unpleasant a nasty temper the nasty things that were being written about her There’s a nasty streak in her character. Drivers often have a nasty habit of driving too close to cyclists.nasty to Don’t be so nasty to your mum (=do not treat her unkindly).get/turn nasty especially British English (=suddenly start behaving in a threatening way) When Harry refused, Don turned nasty and went for him with both fists.► see thesaurus at unkind2 person someone who is nasty behaves in an unkind and unpleasant way I went to school with him – he was nasty then and he’s nasty now. You’re a nasty little brute!3 experience/situationUNPLEASANT a nasty experience, feeling, or situation is unpleasantnasty shock/surprise It gave me a nasty shock.nasty feeling/suspicion I had a nasty feeling that a tragedy was going to happen. Life has a nasty habit of repeating itself. He had a nasty accident while riding in the forest. When you feel you’ve been cheated, it always leaves a nasty taste in the mouth (=makes you feel upset or angry afterwards). The weather turned nasty towards the evening.4 sight/smell etcCUNPLEASANT having a bad appearance, smell, taste etc What’s that nasty smell? a market stall selling cheap and nasty watches► see thesaurus at horrible5 injury/illnessHARM/BE BAD FOR severe or very painful a nasty cut He was carried off the field with a nasty injury. 6 substance a nasty substance is dangerous nasty chemicals7 → a nasty piece of work —nastily adverb —nastiness noun [uncountable] → video nasty
Examples from the Corpus
nasty• Anyway, after seven years, people get nasty.• Some resisted, and for a time things got nasty.• I'd avoid him. if I were you. He can be quite nasty.• There was a nasty accident on the freeway and seven people were killed.• Cheap perfume often smells nasty after a couple of hours.• I'm not very keen on this wine. It has a nasty aftertaste.• Soon after he joined Rangers he was involved in a nasty and bitter dismissal, sacking the club's long standing groundsman.• Line play is nasty, brutal and hurtful.• I don't mean to be nasty, but I don't think we should work together any more.• A few days later, Brian had a nasty case of poison oak.• Their marriage ended in a nasty divorce.• I'm so glad you didn't get that nasty flu, Joan.• Strachan was carried off with what looked like a nasty injury.• I thought they would come to school and write nasty letters and stuff.• a particularly nasty murder case• Don't let that nasty old dog come up here.• It's pretty nasty outside - they're expecting freezing rain.• My first boss was a really nasty person, who seemed to enjoy making life difficult for everyone.• These lads were the blunt end of a much nastier problem.• I just heard a nasty rumor about Jill.• a nasty sense of humor• The scrubbing was the nastiest, she thought despairingly, bad though blacking the grates, particularly the kitchen range, was.• The news of his death came as a very nasty shock.• Police were alerted when neighbors complained of a nasty smell coming from the basement.• His mouth twisted into a nasty snarl.• Stacy said he was really nasty to her.• Some of the older boys were being very nasty to him.• Paul, you mustn't be nasty to the children. You'll make them cry.nasty habit• Appraisal schemes have a nasty habit of becoming complex and over sophisticated.• It is a simple enough message but one which has a nasty habit of being forgotten when companies decide to shed staff.• Both subscriptions cost about £800 per year and both have the nasty habit of being so voluminous as to go largely unread.• Although an attractive addition to a tank, it has a nasty habit of fighting with members of its own species.• Yet unlikely figures often have a nasty habit of turning out to be true.nasty little• The nastiest little attack we endured at this time came from, of all papers, the Lancet.• Now go away, you nasty little brat.• A very large part of it is due to a nasty little bug called phylloxera.• Knock it senseless every hour when it raised its fanged head and decided to sharpen its nasty little claws.• Ooh, there's a nasty little idea.• There crawled into my mind one nasty little question that I'd been fighting off till now.• When I was a teen-ager, a group of friends and I made a nasty little sport out of belittling one another.nasty shock/surprise• But when you get hold of the document and look at the detail you're in for a nasty surprise.• Naturally, the tricky business of welding the Germanies together could still bring nasty surprises.• Next April's council elections could prove a nasty shock.• There were rarely any nasty surprises.• Give them a nasty shock; a surprise which is going to put you one step ahead before things have even started.• What further nasty surprises awaited me that day?• I'd have got a nasty shock otherwise.cheap and nasty• The sunroof looks cheap and nasty.• The Melrose may be the cheap end of the market, but it isn't the cheap and nasty end.• They were watch boxes, cheap and nasty, the kind sold in filling-stations.• He says it's a cheap and nasty way of administering justice in this country.Origin nasty (1300-1400) Perhaps from a Scandinavian language 