Disgusting means so unpleasant or revolting that it makes you feel physically sick or want to turn away. When you encounter something disgusting, your body might react: your stomach churns, your face scrunches up, you might even gag. Finding moldy food in the back of the refrigerator is disgusting. Stepping in dog poop is disgusting. The smell of rotten eggs is disgusting.

The word describes things that trigger a powerful sense of revulsion. This reaction actually protects us: feeling disgusted by spoiled food or waste keeps us from eating or touching things that might make us sick. Scientists who study emotions consider disgust one of our basic, universal feelings, something people across all cultures experience.

But disgust extends beyond physical reactions. You might find someone's cruel behavior disgusting, even though cruelty doesn't have a smell or taste. When someone bullies a younger student or lies to get a friend in trouble, their actions can feel morally disgusting, creating that same sense of wanting to turn away.

The opposite of disgusting might be appealing, delicious, or delightful. Something only mildly unpleasant isn't quite disgusting. That word is reserved for things that are truly revolting, the kind that makes you say “that's gross!” and mean it with your whole being.