Where does “atrocious” come from?

Atrocious comes from Latin atrox meaning cruel or savage, through the suffix -osus forming adjectives, combined with -ous in English to create the meaning of extreme cruelty or wickedness.

atrocious (English): Frightful, evil, cruel, or monstrous; Offensive...

Definitions

  1. Frightful, evil, cruel, or monstrous; Offensive...

Ancestry of “atrocious”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinatrōxfierce, savage, bloody

Words derived from “atrocious

Every word from Latin atrōx