sadist
Americannoun
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sadists
plural
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Psychiatry. a person who has the condition of sadism, in which one receives sexual gratification from causing pain and degradation to another.
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a person who enjoys being cruel.
Usage
What is a sadist? The word sadist is used to refer to a person who derives sexual satisfaction from other people’s pain and suffering, especially when they are the one inflicting that pain. Sadist is also used more generally to refer to a person who enjoys being cruel to others, as in My boss is such a sadist that he enjoys making us work late and not paying us for it. The state or condition of being a sadist or engaging in such practices is called sadism. The adjective form is sadistic. Both terms can be used either specifically or generally. In the context of psychology, the word sadism is used to refer to a disorder in which a person derives sexual pleasure from other people’s pain in a way that harms themselves or harms others without others’ consent. In casual use, such a person may be referred to as a sadist, but like any other disorder, it is usually preferred and recommended to use person-first language, as in a person with a sadism disorder. The word sadist is often contrasted (or confused) with the word masochist, which refers to a person who gets sexual gratification from being on the receiving end of pain or humiliation, rather than from causing it. Masochism is considered a psychological disorder if the person who engages in such practices experiences distress (such as guilt or anxiety) during them or is unable to otherwise function as a healthy person. The term sadomasochism combines both terms to refer to sexual practices in which one person is sexually gratified by inflicting pain and the other person is sexually gratified by being the receiver of pain. It is popularly abbreviated as S&M or SM (which appears in the related abbreviation BDSM). Example: I’m starting to think my teacher is some kind of sadist who enjoys torturing students with homework.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of sadist
Compare meaning
How does sadist compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
A sadist is someone who enjoys inflicting pain on others, sometimes in a sexual sense. Sadists like seeing other people hurt. A sadist is the opposite of a masochist, who enjoys being in pain. A sadist is all about hurting others, usually to get off sexually. However, this word is about more than sex. Anyone who is mean and enjoys it — like a bully — could be considered a sadist. Anyone who tortures another human being is almost certainly a sadist. Unfortunately, we can all be a sadist at certain moments. If you've ever been mean to someone and enjoyed it, you were being a little sadistic.
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.
See Examples For:
On Wednesday, chief prosecutor Ute Lindemann described Brückner as a "dangerous, psychopathic sadist" and said he should be placed in preventive detention after serving his sentence.
From BBC ● Oct. 2, 2024
Fromm covers much of this ground again, analyzing Heinrich Himmler and Josef Stalin as case studies of the sadist driven by the need to dominate.
From Salon ● Apr. 9, 2024
In his sweeping 1965 novel “Dune,” Herbert introduced one for the ages: a corpulent, power-hungry sadist with the suitably sinister name of Baron Vladimir Harkonnen.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2021
“J’Nai is a low-key sadist when it comes to exercise,” says her best friend, Sakura Myers, a classical pianist who also played state championship basketball in high school.
From New York Times ● Nov. 13, 2019
I’m not sure what kind of sadist rings doorbells at seven thirty on a Saturday morning, but I’m going to find out because I’m the only one awake.
From "Hello, Universe" by Erin Entrada Kelly
An overwhelming handful, this early history play retains its popularity largely through the audacious villainy of its title character, one of Shakespeare’s most flamboyant sadists.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
Maybe we should just stop trying to define someone’s interests from afar, and labeling them as sadists when they make a choice that we find incomprehensible.
From Salon ● Aug. 20, 2024
Instead, she adds clever touches to an extent that this book could be used as a blueprint for a world run by passive-aggressive sadists.
From New York Times ● Jan. 4, 2022
"We didn't support sadists who had no place to exercise their practices," Kwasniewski said.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 29, 2021
There were, he supposed, sadists on both sides.
From Decision by H. R. Smith
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.
