The words “good” and “bad” express how we feel about something. However, they’re also overused, which means they can lack impact.
To make your writing more powerful, then, you might want to use some of the synonyms for “good” and “bad” from below.
“Good” has many uses as a noun and an adjective. Here, we’ll focus on the adjectival uses, where its basic meaning is “desirable” or “of a high standard.”
Note, though, that the best alternative will depend on what you’re trying to say. Here’s a list of some common uses of “good” and suitable synonyms:
Definition
Example
Synonyms
Acceptable in quality or degree
We have a good sense of how to proceed.
adequate, fair, satisfactory, sufficient
High quality or desirable
Ghostbusters is a good film.
brilliant, excellent, great, outstanding, superb
Useful or beneficial
Regular exercise is good for your health.
advantageous, helpful, positive, valuable
Morally good or agreeable
A good person helps those in need.
admirable, decent, respectable, virtuous
Skilled or capable
He is a very good singer.
accomplished, proficient, skillful, talented
Pleasant or pleasing
That flower smells good.
delightful, enjoyable, nice, pleasurable, satisfying
The best way to pick a “good” (i.e., acceptable) synonym is to know what you’re trying to say. This will often lead you to a more descriptive alternative.
Subscribe to our newsletter and get writing tips from our editors straight to your inbox.
We say something is “bad” to express a negative opinion. It is, therefore, the opposite of good in every sense. Here are several alternative terms:
Low quality or faulty
A bad diet can cause health issues.
deficient, inadequate, mediocre, poor
Of a very low quality
Bathing in a tub of scorpions was a bad idea.
awful, dreadful, terrible, unacceptable
Harmful or negative
Smoking is bad for you.
damaging, detrimental, injurious, unhealthy
Immoral or disagreeable
Bad behavior will be punished.
evil, reprehensible, unpleasant, wrong
Unpleasant or unwelcome
We saw the bad news on television.
abhorrent, disagreeable, troublesome, undesirable
There are other uses of “bad” not described here, such as describing an injured body part (e.g., a “bad back”) or rotten food (e.g., “bad meat”). As with “good,” this makes it important to check the definition of synonyms for “bad.”
It’s okay to use words like “good” and “bad” in academic writing, but they’re not usually enough by themselves. This is because they’re evaluative rather than descriptive. For example, if we were writing about management techniques, we might say, “Unpaid overtime is bad for staff morale.” That is an evaluation. But to demonstrate our understanding, we’d also need to explain why it’s bad and how we reached that conclusion.
The answer, then, is to remember that academic writing requires an explanation of our judgments. The same applies to these words in other forms of critical writing. Another option is to have your work proofread by the experts. As part of this service, we will highlight and suggest replacements for “weak” language like “good” and “bad” if it is misused. And this, in turn, will make sure that your writing makes more of an impact.
Δ
2-minute read
If you’re writing about health issues, you might need to reference the Centers for Disease...
5-minute read
Introduction If you’re involved with ecommerce, you’re likely familiar with the often painstaking process of...
3-minute read
Are you interested in learning more about the role of a content editor and the...
4-minute read
Proofreading is important to ensure your writing is clear and concise for your readers. Whether...
Creating presentations can be time-consuming and frustrating. Trying to construct a visually appealing and informative...
No matter your industry, conducting market research helps you keep up to date with shifting...