barbarous
[ bahr-ber-uhs ]
/ ˈbɑr bər əs /
adjective
uncivilized; wild; savage; crude.
savagely cruel or harsh: The prisoners of war were given barbarous treatment.
full of harsh sounds; noisy; discordant: an evening of wild and barbarous music.
not conforming to classical standards or accepted usage, as language.
foreign; alien.
(among ancient Greeks) designating a person or thing of non-Greek origin.
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Origin of barbarous
1400–50; late Middle English <Latin barbarus<Greek bárbaros non-Greek, foreign, barbarian; akin to Sanskrit barbara stammering, non-Aryan; see -ous
synonym study for barbarous
1. See barbarian.
OTHER WORDS FROM barbarous
Words nearby barbarous
barbarity, barbarize, Barbarossa, Barbarossa I, Barbarossa II, barbarous, Barbary, Barbary ape, Barbary Coast, Barbary Coast Wars, Barbary fig
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for barbarous
British Dictionary definitions for barbarous
barbarous
/ (ˈbɑːbərəs) /
adjective
uncivilized; primitive
brutal or cruel
lacking refinement
Derived forms of barbarous
barbarously, adverbbarbarousness, nounWord Origin for barbarous
C15: via Latin from Greek barbaros barbarian, non-Greek, in origin imitative of incomprehensible speech; compare Sanskrit barbara stammering, non-Aryan
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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