Aweful vs. Awful: How to Spell It

If you are looking for the correct spelling, here it is: Awful is the only correct spelling in standard English.

The word is formed by combining "awe" and "full," but the "e" is dropped (A-W-F-U-L). Spelling it as "aweful" with an extra "e" is universally considered a grammatical error in professional, academic, and casual writing. If you struggle with this word, you are not alone—it is one of the most frequently misspelled words in the American English language.

Notice how the root "awe" loses its "e" when meeting the consonant suffix "-ful". This prevents a clumsy vowel-consonant-vowel cluster.

To understand why the "e" is missing, we have to look at how English words are built. The word "awful" originally meant "full of awe" or "inspiring awe." It is built from two parts: the root word "awe" (meaning wonder or fear) and the suffix "-ful" (meaning "full of").

When adding the suffix "-ful" to a base word that ends in a silent "e", standard English spelling rules require you to drop the "e". You keep the "w" and add "-ful", creating "awful". Therefore, if you want to spell it correctly, you must drop the "e".

Noah Webster and other spelling reformers solidified this rule to make spelling more predictable. Words like "careful" (care + ful) and "plentiful" (plenty + ful) follow similar rules of dropping or modifying the base word's ending before adding a consonant suffix.

• Awful weather
• Feel awful
• Awful lot of
• Awful smell
• Look awful
• Awful truth

In daily conversation, "awful" is heavily used to complain about bad experiences, poor quality, or feeling sick. For example, telling a friend, "I feel awful today" implies you are physically or emotionally unwell. It is a common, expressive way to describe anything negative.

• I feel awful about forgetting your birthday.
• The traffic on the highway was awful this morning.
• The coffee was awful, so I asked for a refund.
• It was the most awful meal I have ever had.
• The service at that restaurant was awful.

In academic writing, "awful" is frequently used to describe historical conditions, severe situations, or extreme quantities. For instance, "The working conditions during the Industrial Revolution were awful." It can also emphasize magnitude, as in "an awful amount of data."

• The working conditions in the 19th century were awful.
• The disease had an awful impact on the population.
• The sheer scale of the disaster was awful to comprehend.
• The burden of proof is an awful thing to carry.
• There is an awful irony in his situation.

In business emails, "awful" is used to express strong dissatisfaction with a vendor, product, or situation. Saying "The service was awful" sounds much more severe than saying "The service was subpar." It implies a total failure in quality or customer care.

• The presentation of the dish was awful.
• The meeting was an awful waste of time.
• The delivery driver was awful at following directions.
• The flight attendant was awful to the passengers.
• It was an awful day at the office.