awful practice

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "awful practice" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a method or behavior that is considered poor or unacceptable in a particular context. Example: "The company's decision to ignore employee feedback is an awful practice that undermines morale."

✓ Grammatically correct

General discussions of unacceptable behaviors

Critiques of organizational policies

Descriptions of personal experiences

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

It's within your power to prevent this awful practice".

The New York Times

Ms Nazer said: "I don't think the Government is doing what they should do to terminate this awful practice.

Independent

"I was having a very hard time preparing for this tournament and had just an awful practice round Wednesday," Azinger said.

The New York Times - Sports

As Kondrashov notes, the world has dealt with concerns about genes, in the past, through the awful practice of eugenics; and the ability of men to live longer, and to procreate later, is a wonderful thing.

The New Yorker

Addressing MPs in the the Commons, Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt described blagging as an "awful" practice and said the judge-led inquiry into phone-hacking would look at all illegal methods newspapers may have used in the past to obtain information.

BBC

"Hazing is an awful practice.

Los Angeles Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

Though Dr. Peters has continued to work with the healers, he said there was little financing to carry out H.I.V. sensitization campaigns directed at this group, so "such awful practices persist in Nigeria and Africa in general".

The New York Times

It was only a little over two years ago that the collapse of the Rana Plaza clothing factory in Bangladesh killed over 1,200 people and forced big fashion brands to confront the dirty secrets of the awful practices of their suppliers yet again.

TechCrunch

The awful practices and incidents that Lipscomb alleges echo findings and allegations from prior government and media investigations of the for-profit college industry in the past five years.

Huffington Post

In fact, that's the reason many of us avoid stepping outside this zone -- we've heard a million times over that it's great for us, but it feels absolutely awful in practice.

Huffington Post

There was a speaker I saw recently who was setting up a potentially interesting story about how she became the head of SEO for a big company, which was in turn squandered by immediately meandering into how she was "the chosen one" to correct all the awful SEO practices that had been in place.

Forbes

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "awful practice", provide specific details about the practice you are criticizing to strengthen your argument and make it more persuasive.

Common error

Avoid relying solely on the word "awful" to convey your disapproval. Support your assessment with concrete evidence and logical reasoning to avoid sounding biased or hyperbolic.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "awful practice" primarily functions as a noun phrase, where the adjective "awful" modifies the noun "practice". It serves to express a negative judgment or disapproval of a particular method, behavior, or custom. Ludwig AI confirms its correctness and usability.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

57%

Academia

29%

Formal & Business

14%

Less common in

Science

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "awful practice" is a phrase used to express strong disapproval of a particular method or behavior. Ludwig AI confirms the phrase is correct and usable in English. While grammatically sound and commonly understood, its frequency is uncommon. It is most often found in news and academic contexts, serving to criticize and highlight negative aspects. Related phrases include "terrible habit" and "poor practice", offering alternative ways to convey disapproval with varying degrees of intensity. When using this phrase, support your assessment with concrete evidence to strengthen your argument.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

terrible habit

Replaces "practice" with "habit", focusing on a repeated behavior.

dreadful method

Substitutes "awful" with "dreadful" and "practice" with "method", intensifying the negative connotation.

unacceptable behavior

Replaces both words with synonyms that emphasize a breach of standards.

poor practice

Uses a milder adjective to describe the practice, suggesting it's inadequate rather than terrible.

appalling procedure

Emphasizes the formal aspect of a "practice" using "procedure" while heightening negativity with "appalling".

abominable custom

Replaces "practice" with "custom" to highlight traditional but offensive behaviors, intensifying the negative judgment.

atrocious conduct

Focuses on the action, replacing "practice" with "conduct" and amplifying negativity with "atrocious".

shocking method

Shifts the focus to the surprising or disturbing nature of the practice.

egregious activity

Emphasizes the outstandingly bad nature of the "activity".

unethical behavior

Highlights the moral dimension of the practice.

FAQs

How can I use "awful practice" in a sentence?

You can use "awful practice" to criticize methods or behaviors you strongly disapprove of. For instance, "The company's reliance on short-term contracts is an awful practice that harms employee morale."

What are some alternatives to saying "awful practice"?

Depending on the context, you could use alternatives like "terrible habit", "poor practice", or "unacceptable behavior".

Is "awful practice" too informal for professional writing?

While "awful" is a strong word, "awful practice" can be suitable for professional contexts if the tone aligns with the message you need to convey. For more formal situations, consider using "unethical behavior" or "unacceptable behavior".

What makes a practice qualify as an "awful practice"?

An "awful practice" is characterized by negative consequences, inefficiency, ethical concerns, or a violation of established standards. The severity of these issues often warrants the use of such a strong term.