barbaric
Americanadjective
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without civilizing influences; uncivilized; primitive.
barbaric invaders.
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of, like, or befitting barbarians.
a barbaric empire; barbaric practices.
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crudely rich or splendid.
barbaric decorations.
adjective
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of or characteristic of barbarians
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primitive or unsophisticated; unrestrained
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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.
Woods denounced the gas chamber just as others in Arizona had once denounced hanging, saying that it was barbaric and out of step with modern standards of justice.
From Slate • Feb. 24, 2026
This statement, spoken through mechanical narration that makes it all the more barbaric, made my heart sink and my teeth grit.
From Salon • Feb. 1, 2026
One reason may be that many of the incarcerated are in bad shape and would embarrass the barbaric Ms. Rodríguez, who tries to cultivate a persona of civility by dressing like Imelda Marcos.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 17, 2026
But "he's not the monster or the barbaric prisoner that they're saying," said Ada, whom AFP contacted through his lawyer.
From Barron's • Oct. 10, 2025
All that stands in the way of our assessment of our sixteenth- and seventeenth-century ancestors as cruel, barbaric monsters is what they produced in art, poetry, architecture and music.
From "The Story of Music" by Howard Goodall
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.
