brutal
Americanadjective
-
savage; cruel; inhuman.
a brutal attack on the village.
- Antonyms:
- kind
-
crude; coarse.
brutal language.
-
harsh; ferocious.
brutal criticism; brutal weather.
-
taxing, demanding, or exhausting.
They're having a brutal time making ends meet.
-
irrational; unreasoning.
-
of or relating to lower animals.
- Antonyms:
- human
adjective
-
cruel; vicious; savage
-
extremely honest or coarse in speech or manner
-
harsh; severe; extreme
brutal cold
Synonym Usage
See cruel.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of brutal
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Medieval Latin brūtālis; equivalent to brute 1 + -al 1
Explanation
Use brutal to describe something beastly and harsh, like training for a triathlon, a really cold winter in the Arctic, or a mean bouncer at a club who throws people out for no reason. First used in the mid 15th century to refer to the brutish nature of animals, brutal is now also used to describe other things like human behavior, weather, or even music. “Rock ‘n Roll,” said Frank Sinatra, “is the most brutal, ugly, desperate, vicious form of expression it has been my misfortune to hear.” If someone is brutal, watch out — she's violent and mean. The truth can be brutal, too, if it's something you don't want to hear.
Vocabulary lists containing brutal
Wintry Words
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The Crossover
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Sugar Changed the World
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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.
The chase had been set up by New Zealand's Tim Seifert, who struck a magnificent 72 off 38, featuring seven sixes and four fours in a brutal display of power.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
As the models from Anthropic and OpenAI keep toppling brutal problems, they have done something no less improbable: They have turned me into a math person.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 15, 2026
Alcaraz had lived a hard, brutal road, Daniell told me.
From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026
And thanks to a brutal July, “the capacity of TMT Equity Sector and Multi Strat hedge funds to hold tech exposures would be structurally more limited going forward,” they said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 6, 2026
December of 1941 is a brutal month for the Philippines, especially in Manila.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
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.
