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Nasty vs. Gross — What's the Difference?

By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on November 4, 2023
Nasty refers to something unpleasant, potentially harmful, or morally offensive. Gross typically means something extremely unpleasant to the senses, especially sight or smell.
Nasty vs. Gross — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Nasty and Gross

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Key Differences

Nasty can describe something that is unpleasant and can cause discomfort or disgust, often implying malice or harmfulness. It might be used to describe a mean comment, a foul weather condition, or a filthy room. Gross, however, leans more towards describing something that is repulsive, especially to the senses. It's the word you'd use for things like rotten food, graphic images, or the feeling of something slimy.
In terms of behavior, nasty can refer to actions or attitudes that are spiteful or mean-spirited. Someone might be called nasty if they are behaving in a cruel way. Gross, on the other hand, would be used to describe actions that are crude or indecent, such as making repulsive gestures or telling vulgar jokes, which are less about malice and more about being offensively improper.
When talking about physical experiences, nasty often implies a degree of intensity or severity that gross does not necessarily carry. You might describe a serious injury as nasty, whereas gross would be more likely used to describe something that causes strong revulsion, like seeing the injury's graphic details.
Nasty can also have a moral dimension, referring to things that are ethically wrong or corrupt. For instance, one might refer to a scandal as a nasty business. Gross does not typically carry a moral implication; it stays within the realm of causing strong disgust, often through a visceral reaction to sensory input.
Nasty has a certain flexibility, allowing it to be used metaphorically to describe anything generally unpleasant or undesirable, such as "a nasty surprise." Gross, while it can be used in a range of contexts, usually keeps close to its core meaning related to eliciting a strong, negative physical reaction, such as "a gross miscalculation" still evoking the sense of something substantially unpleasant.
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Comparison Chart

Definition

Unpleasant, harmful, or morally offensive
Extremely unpleasant, revolting

Usage Context

Can be moral, physical, or social
Primarily physical or sensory

Connotation

Spiteful, harmful, intense
Crude, indecent, repulsive

Severity

May imply something serious or harmful
Implies something that causes revulsion

Emotional Response

Anger, offense, or discomfort
Disgust or strong aversion

Compare with Definitions

Nasty

Disagreeably dirty or filthy.
The room was left in a nasty state after the party.

Gross

Extremely coarse or vulgar.
His joke was too gross to be funny.

Nasty

Behaving in a mean or hostile way.
The argument turned nasty when insults were exchanged.

Gross

Total, complete, or glaringly obvious.
It was a gross underestimate of the time needed for the project.

Nasty

Morally offensive or indecent.
The book was banned for its nasty content.

Gross

Extremely overweight or obese.
He described his unhealthy eating habits as gross.

Nasty

Very bad or unpleasant
Plastic bags burn with a nasty, acrid smell
Dad's had a nasty accident

Gross

Pertaining to overall figures or amounts, without deductions.
Her gross salary is higher before taxes are taken out.

Nasty

Behaving in an unpleasant or spiteful way
Harry was a nasty, foul-mouthed old devil

Gross

Exclusive of deductions; total
Gross profits.

Nasty

Damaging or harmful
A nasty, vicious-looking hatchet

Gross

Unmitigated in any way; utter
Gross incompetence.

Nasty

An unpleasant or harmful person or thing
A water conditioner to neutralize chlorine and other nasties

Gross

So obvious or conspicuous as to cause or heighten offense
Gross injustice.

Nasty

Disgusting or repellent
A nasty odor rising from the garbage can.

Gross

Brutishly coarse, as in behavior; crude
"It is futile to expect a hungry and squalid population to be anything but violent and gross" (Thomas H. Huxley).

Nasty

Unpleasantly cold or wet
Nasty weather.

Gross

Disgusting or offensive
Don't you think slugs are gross? He told a gross joke.

Nasty

(Archaic) Dirty; filthy.

Gross

Overweight; corpulent
"Sally is fat. She is gross. She must weigh twelve stone and more" (Margaret Drabble).

Nasty

Morally offensive or indecent
A nasty film.

Gross

On a large scale; not fine or detailed
Gross anatomical similarities.
Gross motor skills.

Nasty

Unpleasant or annoying
A nasty habit.

Gross

Broad; general
The gross necessities of life.

Nasty

Mean or spiteful
Stop being nasty to each other.

Gross

Pl. gross·es The entire body or amount, as of income, before necessary deductions have been made.

Nasty

Painful or dangerous; grave
A nasty accident.

Gross

Pl. gross Abbr. gr. or gro. A group of 144 items; 12 dozen.

Nasty

Exasperatingly difficult to solve or handle
A nasty puzzle.
A nasty problem.

Gross

To earn as a total income or profit before deductions
The store grossed $10,000 last month.

Nasty

One that is nasty
"It is the business of museums to present us with nasties as well as with fine things" (Country Life).

Gross

(of behaviour considered to be wrong) Highly or conspicuously offensive.
A gross mistake;
Gross injustice;
Gross negligence; a gross insult

Nasty

Dirty, filthy.

Gross

(of an amount) Excluding any deductions; including all associated amounts.
Gross domestic product; gross income; gross weight

Nasty

Contemptible, unpleasant (of a person).

Gross

Seen without a microscope (usually for a tissue or an organ); at a large scale; not detailed.
Gross anatomy

Nasty

Objectionable, unpleasant (of a thing); repellent, offensive.

Gross

Causing disgust.
I threw up all over the bed. It was totally gross.

Nasty

Indecent or offensive; obscene, lewd.

Gross

Lacking refinement in behaviour or manner; offending a standard of morality.

Nasty

Spiteful, unkind.

Gross

(of a product) Lacking refinement; not of high quality.

Nasty

Awkward, difficult to navigate; dangerous.

Gross

(of a person) Heavy in proportion to one's height; having a lot of excess flesh.

Nasty

Grave or dangerous (of an accident, illness etc.).

Gross

Difficult or impossible to see through.

Nasty

Formidable, terrific; wicked.

Gross

(archaic) Not sensitive in perception or feeling.

Nasty

(informal) Something nasty.
Processed foods are full of aspartame and other nasties.
This video game involves flying through a maze zapping various nasties.

Gross

(obsolete) Easy to perceive.

Nasty

Sexual intercourse.

Gross

Twelve dozen = 144.

Nasty

A video nasty.

Gross

The total nominal earnings or amount, before taxes, expenses, exceptions or similar are deducted. That which remains after all deductions is called net.

Nasty

Offensively filthy; very dirty, foul, or defiled; disgusting; nauseous.

Gross

The bulk, the mass, the masses.

Nasty

Hence, loosely: Offensive; disagreeable; unpropitious; wet; drizzling; as, a nasty rain, day, sky.

Gross

(transitive) To earn money, not including expenses.
The movie grossed three million on the first weekend.

Nasty

Characterized by obscenity; indecent; indelicate; gross; filthy.

Gross

Great; large; bulky; fat; of huge size; excessively large.
A gross body of horse under the Duke.

Nasty

Vicious; offensively ill-tempered; insultingly mean; spiteful; as, a nasty disposition.

Gross

Coarse; rough; not fine or delicate.

Nasty

Difficult to deal with; troublesome; as, he fell of his bike and got a nasty bruise on his knee.

Gross

Not easily aroused or excited; not sensitive in perception or feeling; dull; witless.
Tell her of things that no gross ear can hear.

Nasty

Offensive or even (of persons) malicious;
In a nasty mood
A nasty accident
A nasty shock
A nasty smell
A nasty trick to pull
Will he say nasty things at my funeral?

Gross

Expressing, or originating in, animal or sensual appetites; hence, coarse, vulgar, low, obscene, or impure.
The terms which are delicate in one age become gross in the next.

Nasty

Exasperatingly difficult to handle or circumvent;
A nasty problem
A good man to have on your side in a tight situation

Gross

Disgusting; repulsive; highly offensive; as, a gross remark.

Nasty

Thoroughly unpleasant;
Filthy (or foul or nasty or vile) weather we're having

Gross

Thick; dense; not attenuated; as, a gross medium.

Nasty

Characterized by obscenity;
Had a filthy mouth
Foul language
Smutty jokes

Gross

Great; palpable; serious; vagrant; shameful; as, a gross mistake; gross injustice; gross negligence.

Nasty

Disgustingly dirty; filled or smeared with offensive matter;
As filthy as a pigsty
A foul pond
A nasty pigsty of a room

Gross

Whole; entire; total; without deduction; as, the gross sum, or gross amount, the gross weight; - opposed to net.

Nasty

Severe or intense, especially of weather.
They were caught in a nasty storm while sailing.

Gross

The main body; the chief part, bulk, or mass.
For the gross of the people, they are considered as a mere herd of cattle.

Nasty

Likely to cause harm or injury.
The chemicals in the lab are nasty if mishandled.

Gross

The number of twelve dozen; twelve times twelve; as, a gross of bottles; ten gross of pens.

Gross

Twelve dozen

Gross

The entire amount of income before any deductions are made

Gross

Earn before taxes, expenses, etc.

Gross

Before any deductions;
Gross income

Gross

Visible to the naked eye (especially of rocks and anatomical features)

Gross

Of general aspects or broad distinctions;
The gross details of the structure appear reasonable

Gross

Repellently fat;
A bald porcine old man

Gross

Conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible;
A crying shame
An egregious lie
Flagrant violation of human rights
A glaring error
Gross ineptitude
Gross injustice
Rank treachery

Gross

Without qualification; used informally as (often pejorative) intensifiers;
An arrant fool
A complete coward
A consummate fool
A double-dyed villain
Gross negligence
A perfect idiot
Pure folly
What a sodding mess
Stark staring mad
A thoroughgoing villain
Utter nonsense

Gross

Conspicuously and tastelessly indecent;
Coarse language
A crude joke
Crude behavior
An earthy sense of humor
A revoltingly gross expletive
A vulgar gesture
Full of language so vulgar it should have been edited

Gross

Causing intense disgust; revolting.
The sight of the spoiled food was simply gross.

Common Curiosities

Is nasty a stronger word than gross?

Nasty can imply malice and severity, whereas gross typically focuses on revulsion.

Can something be both nasty and gross?

Yes, some things can be both unpleasant (nasty) and revolting (gross).

Do nasty and gross have positive forms?

No, they are generally used negatively.

Is nasty ever used in a playful context?

Sometimes, but it usually retains a slight edge of unpleasantness.

Are nasty and gross subjective terms?

Yes, what one person finds nasty or gross may not affect another the same way.

Can gross describe a smell?

Yes, gross often describes offensive smells.

Would a foul taste be described as nasty or gross?

It could be described as either, depending on the level of revulsion.

Can people be described as gross?

Yes, if their actions or appearance evoke strong disgust.

Do the meanings of nasty and gross overlap in British English?

They can, but there might be slight differences in connotation.

Is nasty used for situations as well as objects?

Yes, nasty can describe a broad range of unpleasant things, including situations.

Can gross be used in a non-literal sense?

Yes, gross can be used figuratively to describe things like errors or misjudgments.

Can food be described as nasty?

Yes, if it's particularly unappetizing or spoiled.

Is it grammatically correct to say "grossly nasty"?

Yes, it's correct and would emphasize how unpleasant something is.

Are there polite synonyms for nasty and gross?

Yes, words like unpleasant or disagreeable could be polite alternatives.

Is it appropriate to use nasty or gross in formal writing?

Generally, these words are informal and might be avoided in formal writing.

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Author Spotlight

Written by
Tayyaba Rehman
Tayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.

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