Have a Bad Feeling: Meaning, Examples & Usage

Meaning 1：sense impending doom (Have a bad feeling)

Have a bad feeling 🔊

/hæv ə bæd ˈfiːlɪŋ/

v. phr.

To sense that something negative or unfortunate is going to happen.

Person sensing impending doom with worried expression

sense impending doom 🔊

➕

/sɛns ɪmˈpɛndɪŋ duːm/

v. phr.

To experience an intuitive sense or feeling that something negative, unpleasant, or dangerous is about to occur. It often implies a lack of concrete evidence but a strong emotional conviction.

📁 Category：Physical & Mental Health 🔖 Level：intermediate

📘 Details & Usage

📖 Root Explanation

Phrasal verb: 'have' (possess) + 'a bad feeling' (negative intuition).

💡 Mnemonic

Imagine a dark cloud forming in your stomach, giving you a 'bad feeling' that something is wrong.

📖 Example

Even though I studied, I have a bad feeling about this exam. 🔊 Even though I studied, I have a bad feeling about this exam.

🔗 Collocations

have a bad feeling about – to feel negative about something

get a bad feeling – to suddenly experience a negative intuition

a bad feeling in one's gut – a strong intuitive sense of trouble

🔄 Synonyms

have a premonition (v. phr.) – to have a prophetic sense of future events

sense trouble (v.) – to detect potential problems

feel foreboding (v.) – to experience a sense of impending doom

🚫 Antonyms

feel confident (v.) – to have a positive expectation

have a good feeling (v. phr.) – to sense that something positive will happen

📖 Cultural Story

This expression reflects a universal human experience of foreboding, often used in everyday conversation to express anxiety about uncertain outcomes.