cruel

[kroo-uhl]

See more synonyms for cruel on Thesaurus.com

adjective, cru·el·er, cru·el·est.

willfully or knowingly causing pain or distress to others.
enjoying the pain or distress of others: the cruel spectators of the gladiatorial contests.
causing or marked by great pain or distress: a cruel remark; a cruel affliction.

rigid; stern; strict; unrelentingly severe.

Origin of cruel

1175–1225; Middle English < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin crūdēlis, equivalent to crūd(us) (see crude) + -ēlis adj. suffix

Related formscru·el·ly, adverbcru·el·ness, nounun·cru·el, adjectiveun·cru·el·ly, adverbun·cru·el·ness, noun

Synonyms for cruel

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1. bloodthirsty, ferocious, merciless, relentless.

Synonym study

1. Cruel, pitiless, ruthless, brutal, savage imply readiness to cause pain to others. Cruel implies willingness to cause pain, and indifference to suffering: a cruel stepfather. Pitiless adds the idea of refusal to show compassion: pitiless to captives. Ruthless implies cruelty and unscrupulousness, letting nothing stand in one's way: ruthless greed. Brutal implies cruelty that takes the form of physical violence: a brutal master. Savage suggests fierceness and brutality: savage battles.

Antonyms for cruel

1. kind. 2. sympathetic, compassionate.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for cruel

atrocious, heartless, harsh, ruthless, inhuman, callous, cold-blooded, bitter, merciless, tyrannical, barbarous, vicious, evil, hateful, unkind, spiteful, brutal, painful, sadistic, wicked

Examples from the Web for cruel

Contemporary Examples of cruel

His later books drew heavily from experiences and people he encountered at the bar, including the cruel captain in The Sea-Wolf.
The Bars That Made America Great
Nina Strochlic
December 28, 2014
Not to those in power, not to the cruel and inhumane, not to the wealthy.
Jesus Wasn’t Born Rich. Think About It.
Gene Robinson
December 25, 2014
Hatuey replied that he would rather burn and be sent to hell than ever again encounter people as cruel as the Spanish.
The Life and Hard Times Of The Family A Cuban Defector Left Behind
Brin-Jonathan Butler
December 19, 2014
The story of Alstory Simon has all the scope and scale, the cruel reversals, and pointless waste of proper tragedy.
Wrongly Imprisoned for 15 Years Thanks to an Innocence Project
Jacob Siegel
November 13, 2014
Vsevolod Meyerhold, the great theater director, spoke of the effect the “angry, cruel headlines” had on his friend.
When Stalin Met Lady Macbeth
Brian Moynahan
November 9, 2014

Historical Examples of cruel

They were kind-hearted and rarely did anything that was cruel.
Ancient Man
Hendrik Willem van Loon
Supposing—— It was cruel to excite and upset her just for that; it made the pain worse.
Life and Death of Harriett Frean
May Sinclair
The contrasts were so cruel that they scorched the eyes of the soul.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
Those who bring them on us seem captious, thoughtless, cruel.
The Conquest of Fear
Basil King
"He is cruel, and the very incarnation of selfishness," he said.
Weighed and Wanting
George MacDonald

British Dictionary definitions for cruel

cruel

adjective

causing or inflicting pain without pitya cruel teacher
causing pain or sufferinga cruel accident

Derived Formscruelly, adverbcruelness, noun

Word Origin for cruel

C13: from Old French, from Latin crūdēlis, from crūdus raw, bloody

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for cruel

adj.

early 13c., from Old French cruel (12c.), earlier crudel, from Latin crudelis "rude, unfeeling; cruel, hard-hearted," related to crudus "rough, raw, bloody" (see crude). Related: Cruelly.