ferocious
Americanadjective
-
savagely fierce, as a wild beast, person, action, or aspect; violently cruel.
a ferocious beating.
- Synonyms:
- rapacious
-
extreme or intense.
a ferocious thirst.
adjective
Related Words
See fierce.
Other Word Forms
- ferociously adverb
- ferociousness noun
- ferocity noun
- nonferocious adjective
- nonferociously adverb
- nonferociousness noun
- unferocious adjective
- unferociously adverb
Etymology
Origin of ferocious
First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin ferōc-, stem of ferōx “savage, fierce” ( fer(us) “wild” ( feral 1, fierce ) + -ōx “having such an appearance”; akin to eye ( def. ), oculus ( def. ), -opsis ) + -ious
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.
What in fact kills patients is the ferocious overreaction of their immune systems, which cause widespread blood clotting and organ failure.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 20, 2026
My mother brought me to this country as a child and toiled with a ferocious determination that afforded our family the means to move farther and farther from the place we started.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 12, 2026
Gyllenhaal zips between tones and styles with a ferocious abandon.
From Salon • Mar. 8, 2026
"Your wild imagination, your brave untethered womanhood, your ferocious gentleness is a guiding light to me."
From BBC • Mar. 2, 2026
Every time the volcano erupts it is larger, angrier, more ferocious.
From "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" by Kelly Barnhill
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.
