cruelty
Americannoun
plural
cruelties-
the state or quality of being cruel.
- Synonyms:
- atrocity, inhumanity, barbarity, ruthlessness, brutality, harshness
-
cruel disposition or conduct.
- Antonyms:
- kindness
-
a cruel act.
- Antonyms:
- kindness
-
Law. conduct by a spouse that causes grievous bodily harm or mental suffering.
noun
-
deliberate infliction of pain or suffering
-
the quality or characteristic of being cruel
-
a cruel action
-
law conduct that causes danger to life or limb or a threat to bodily or mental health, on proof of which a decree of divorce may be granted
Other Word Forms
- anticruelty adjective
- self-cruelty noun
Etymology
Origin of cruelty
1175–1225; Middle English cruelte < Anglo-French, Old French < Latin crūdēlitāt- (stem of crūdēlitās ). See cruel, -ity
Explanation
Cruelty is a characteristic of deliberately causing someone pain. Years of cruelty by their leaders can cause citizens to rise up together and revolt. Keeping a dog tied up outside all day and all night is animal cruelty, while kids' endless bullying of a classmate is another kind of cruelty. In both examples, people act in a coldhearted way that causes another being to feel terrible. The Latin root of cruelty is crudelis, "rude, unfeeling, or hard-hearted," which is related to crudus, "rough, raw, or bloody," the root of crude.
Vocabulary lists containing cruelty
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe
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Real-Life Superheroes
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The Subtle Knife
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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.
"It's just cruelty and collective punishment," Jayapal added.
From Barron's • Apr. 6, 2026
Sometimes it’s the chaos, not the cruelty, that’s the point.
From Slate • Apr. 1, 2026
No deliberate cruelty wounds this dreamy girl, only carelessness and the cataclysm of her mother’s death, which signals “the last day of childhood.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 9, 2026
Her gleeful cruelty was matched only by the audacity of her incompetence.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 6, 2026
I thought about this many times after I became a teacher, and I told myself I’d never be that person who encourages or allows that kind of cruelty, for any reason.”
From "Drama High" by Michael Sokolove
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.
