ferocious

[fuh-roh-shuhs]

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adjective

savagely fierce, as a wild beast, person, action, or aspect; violently cruel: a ferocious beating.
extreme or intense: a ferocious thirst.

Origin of ferocious

1640–50; < Latin ferōc-, stem of ferōx savage, fierce (fer(us) wild (see feral¹, fierce) + -ōx having such an appearance; akin to -opsis) + -ious

Related formsfe·ro·cious·ly, adverbfe·ro·cious·ness, nounnon·fe·ro·cious, adjectivenon·fe·ro·cious·ly, adverbnon·fe·ro·cious·ness, nounun·fe·ro·cious, adjectiveun·fe·ro·cious·ly, adverb

Synonyms for ferocious

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1. rapacious. See fierce.

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

Related Words for ferociousness

depth, violence, savagery, brutality, fury, pitch, fierceness, intensity, vehemence, fervor, fervency, barbarity, ferment, extreme, severity, wildness

Examples from the Web for ferociousness

Historical Examples of ferociousness

You are radically polite; this impetuosity and ferociousness is simply the sincerity which is the basis of a proper deportment.
The Luck of Roaring Camp and Other Tales
Bret Harte
The brutality of the police, equalled in ferociousness the massacre of the Yeomanry Cavalry.
The Battle of The Press
Theophila Carlile Campbell
There was ferociousness in the heart of the Indian, but Grace's voice had stayed his hand.
Grace Harlowe's Overland Riders in the Great North Woods
Jessie Graham Flower
His personal misfortunes will prove the anarchy of the government and the ferociousness of the times.
The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
Edward Gibbon
There was a fascination in his manner that made the ferociousness of his antagonist subside into impotence.
Caleb Williams
William Godwin

British Dictionary definitions for ferociousness

ferocious

adjective

savagely fierce or cruela ferocious tiger; a ferocious argument

Derived Formsferociously, adverbferocity (fəˈrɒsɪtɪ) or ferociousness, noun

Word Origin for ferocious

C17: from Latin ferox fierce, untamable, warlike

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 ferociousness

ferocious

adj.

1640s, from Latin ferocis, oblique case of ferox "fierce, wild-looking" (see ferocity). Related: Ferociously; ferociousness.