savage
fierce, ferocious, or cruel; untamed: savage beasts.
Offensive. relating to or being a preliterate people or society regarded as uncivilized or primitive.
enraged or furiously angry, as a person.
unpolished; rude: savage manners.
wild or rugged, as country or scenery: savage wilderness.
Archaic. uncultivated; growing wild.
a fierce, brutal, or cruel person.
a rude, boorish person.
Disparaging and Offensive. a member of a preliterate people or society regarded as uncivilized or primitive.
to assault and maul by biting, rending, goring, etc.; tear at or mutilate: numerous sheep savaged by dogs.
to attack or criticize thoroughly or remorselessly; excoriate: a play savaged by the critics.
to greatly weaken, damage, or harm: The age of automation and globalization, with companies searching for lower wages overseas, has savaged organized labor.
Origin of savage
1synonym study For savage
word story For savage
The offensive noun sense “a member of a preliterate people regarded as uncivilized” dates from the second half of the 16th century. As it has been applied to the Indigenous people of the Americas, savage has a pernicious history of dehumanizing Native peoples and justifying their removal from ancestral lands and even their genocide. The word has been used to imply that Indigenous peoples lack the civilized qualities that would qualify them to be stewards of their lands, and to justify their removal and replacement. Further, the connotation that savages are capable of or prone to violence has justified retaliatory or preemptive violence against Indigenous people for hundreds of years.
The general use of the term to mean a “cruel, brutal person” and “rude, uncouth person” (uses that date from the early 17th century) and the use of savage as an adjective to describe flora and fauna are common and inoffensive. However, applying this noun or adjective to a people, especially a people of non-Western or non-European descent, has a painful colonial history and is considered disparaging and offensive.
Other words for savage
1 | wild, feral, fell; bloodthirsty |
3 | infuriated |
5 | rough, uncultivated |
8 | churl, oaf |
Opposites for savage
Other words from savage
- sav·age·ly, adverb
- sav·age·ness, noun
- half-sav·age, adjective
- half-sav·age·ly, adverb
- pre·sav·age, adjective
- qua·si-sav·age, adjective
- qua·si-sav·age·ly, adverb
- sem·i·sav·age, adjective
- un·sav·age, adjective
- un·sav·age·ly, adverb
- un·sav·age·ness, noun
Other definitions for Savage (2 of 2)
Michael Joseph, 1872–1940, New Zealand statesman and labor leader: prime minister 1935–40.
Richard, 1697?–1743, English poet.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use savage in a sentence
An idea out of nowhere The Young Dems first came up with the idea for the bill over the summer, when savage had an epiphany while poring over education-related legislation proposed for the 2020 legislative session.
Virginia set to pass historic bill giving students time off to protest — because teen Republicans and Dems teamed up to demand it | Hannah Natanson | February 2, 2021 | Washington PostWith fertilizer, savage explains, plants should get bigger, because they’ll make more sugar.
How to grow your own science experiment | Bethany Brookshire | December 9, 2020 | Science News For StudentsState budgets had been savaged during the 2007-2009 Great Recession and officials were desperate for federal funding.
The telling things Barack Obama wrote — and didn’t mention — about his education policies in new memoir | Valerie Strauss | December 2, 2020 | Washington Postsavage said police are asking people to be careful when handling political signs and let them know if it occurs again.
Arlington police investigate report of razor blades taped to political sign | Rachel Weiner | November 5, 2020 | Washington PostWhat’s really astonishing, savage says, is that pumpkins can get that big in the first place.
Here’s how giant pumpkins get so big | Bethany Brookshire | October 28, 2020 | Science News For Students
He then dons a Spider-Man costume and savagely starts attacking criminals.
Exclusive: Sony Hack Reveals Studio's Detailed Plans For Another ‘Spider-Man’ Reboot | William Boot | December 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe most recent victim is a 28-year-old transgender woman, savagely beaten in front of 1250 Bushwick Avenue on Oct. 12.
Is Brooklyn Becoming Unsafe for Gays? It Depends On Which Ones | Jay Michaelson | October 18, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTThe wife of a federal judge in Alabama says he savagely beat her in a hotel room.
Yet that is when Henry VIII cracks down on dissent even more savagely.
Historical Fiction: A Conversation Between Bruce Holsinger and Nancy Bilyeau | Nancy Bilyeau, Bruce Holsinger | March 30, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTTwo Ukrainian journalists were recently yanked out of taxis and beaten savagely, one shot in the chest and killed.
Ukraine Is On the Verge Of War And Putin Is To Blame | Michael Weiss | February 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTSo he says a soothing word to each of them and runs his pen savagely through almost everything on their papers.
Suddenly she stamps one little foot savagely under the table, and, clenching her jeweled hands, breathes heavily.
The Real Latin Quarter | F. Berkeley SmithHe grasped Lola and drew her down on to the arm of the chair by sheer force, for she resisted savagely.
Dope | Sax Rohmer"It wad be hard to ken," replied Matthew Maitland, taking his pipe out of his mouth and spitting savagely upon the ground.
The Underworld | James C. WelshInstantly, her face became distorted with rage and she kicked out at the kitten, savagely, and with set lips.
The Medici Boots | Pearl Norton Swet
British Dictionary definitions for savage (1 of 2)
/ (ˈsævɪdʒ) /
wild; untamed: savage beasts of the jungle
ferocious in temper; vicious: a savage dog
uncivilized; crude: savage behaviour
(of peoples) nonliterate or primitive: a savage tribe
(of terrain) rugged and uncultivated
obsolete far from human habitation
a member of a nonliterate society, esp one regarded as primitive
a crude or uncivilized person
a fierce or vicious person or animal
to criticize violently
to attack ferociously and wound: the dog savaged the child
Origin of savage
1Derived forms of savage
- savagedom, noun
- savagely, adverb
- savageness, noun
British Dictionary definitions for Savage (2 of 2)
/ (ˈsævɪdʒ) /
Michael Joseph. 1872-1940, New Zealand statesman; prime minister of New Zealand (1935-40)
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
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