hatred
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of hatred
Explanation
The noun hatred means to feel a strong emotional dislike toward something or someone. You feel hatred of people who have done terrible things to you, or books about too-perfect teens. Hatred comes from Old English hete, which means "hate," plus the suffix red (ræden), which means "the condition of." If you find after twenty years of marriage you no longer like your husband, you may be able to work it out. If you feel hatred towards him, your differences may be irreconcilable.
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.
In Costanzo’s closing aria, “Gandhi’s Prayer,” he leaves behind, Christ-like, hatred and exultation for unsullied love.
From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026
Kendrick Lamar’s hatred of Drake is common knowledge regardless of whether you own either rapper’s albums.
From Salon • May 16, 2026
"The scammers, I just have hatred for them," she tells the BBC.
From BBC • May 3, 2026
Instead, hatred often arrives through a social media algorithm.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
A prince must nevertheless make himself feared in such a way that he will avoid hatred, even if he does not acquire love; since one can very easily be feared and yet not hated.
From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli
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.
