barbaric
Americanadjective
-
without civilizing influences; uncivilized; primitive.
barbaric invaders.
-
of, like, or befitting barbarians.
a barbaric empire; barbaric practices.
-
crudely rich or splendid.
barbaric decorations.
adjective
-
of or characteristic of barbarians
-
primitive or unsophisticated; unrestrained
-
brutal
Usage
What does barbaric mean? Barbaric means crude, uncivilized, or primitive. It’s often used to describe things that are cruel or brutal in a way that’s considered entirely uncivilized.Barbaric is also used to describe things that involve people considered barbarians—people who are extremely crude and uncivilized.The term barbarian was used by the ancient Greeks and Romans to refer to any foreigner. In ancient and medieval times, it was variously used to refer to non-Greeks, non-Romans, and non-Christians. The term eventually became associated with a stereotypical image of barbarians as primitive and brutish.Like the word savage, the word barbarian can be very offensive due to its use to dehumanize the people that it’s applied to, especially in a way that calls attention to their otherness or the supposed primitiveness of their culture or customs. Barbaric can also imply these same things, especially when it’s applied to the practices of a culture other than one’s own.The related word barbarous also means uncivilized, crude, or cruel.Example: We need to put an end to this barbaric violence.
Related Words
See barbarian.
Other Word Forms
- barbarically adverb
- nonbarbaric adjective
- prebarbaric adjective
Etymology
Origin of barbaric
1480–90; < Latin barbaricus < Greek barbarikós. See barbarous, -ic
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Ukraine's envoy, Dmytro Tymoshenko, said Russia and Belarus must remain barred from world sport "until Russia ends its barbaric war of aggression against Ukraine."
From Barron's
"The illegal invasion of Ukraine has shown the barbaric nature of Russia's war efforts," he told the programme.
From BBC
McLaughlin’s X post described him and the other four deportees as "individuals so uniquely barbaric that their home countries refused to take them back".
From Barron's
"Two years on from the horrific massacre on October 7, we must also be honest: the same hatred that fuelled those barbaric attacks still festers today," she said.
From BBC
“There’s a tendency to view anything African-derived as ‘barbaric,’ while turning a blind eye to widespread animal slaughter in other contexts,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
