spiteful

[ spahyt-fuhl ]

/ ˈspaɪt fəl /

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See synonyms for: spiteful / spitefully / spitefulness on Thesaurus.com

adjective

full of spite or malice; showing spite; malicious; malevolent; venomous: a spiteful child.

OTHER WORDS FOR spiteful

vengeful, mean, cruel, rancorous.

See synonyms for spiteful on Thesaurus.com

OPPOSITES FOR spiteful

benevolent.

See antonyms for spiteful on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

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Origin of spiteful

A late Middle English word dating back to 1400–50; see origin at spite, -ful

synonym study for spiteful

Spiteful, revengeful, vindictive refer to a desire to inflict a wrong or injury on someone, usually in return for one received. Spiteful implies a mean or malicious desire for (often petty) revenge: a spiteful attitude toward a former friend. Revengeful implies a deep, powerful, and continued intent to repay a wrong: a fierce and revengeful spirit. Vindictive does not imply action necessarily, but stresses the unforgiving nature of the avenger: a vindictive look.

OTHER WORDS FROM spiteful

spite·ful·ly, adverbspite·ful·ness, nounun·spite·ful, adjectiveun·spite·ful·ly, adverb

Words nearby spiteful

spitballer, spitchcock, spit curl, spite, spite fence, spiteful, spitfire, Spithead, spit in the ocean, Spitsbergen, spit-shine

How to use spiteful in a sentence

I’ve endured spiteful comments, like the ones I read at Outside that day, throughout my entire life, from being bullied in school to being spit on and harassed in the streets by random strangers.
What I Learned from Writing Outside’s Pride Newsletter|awise|August 26, 2021|Outside Online
With pop-punk intensity, she sing-talks her way through a song that’s unapologetically bitter and spiteful, with a guitar-driven chorus that just asks for a cathartic singalong.
The Best Songs of 2021 So Far|Raisa Bruner|May 26, 2021|Time
For example, at ages 8 and 9, children made spiteful choices 41 percent of the time with in-group members and 44 percent of the time with out-group members, as compared with 17 versus 33 percent for 12- and 13-year-olds.
Was the Golden Rule Born in the Mind of a Monkey? - Facts So Romantic|Julie Sedivy|March 4, 2021|Nautilus
What remains is just bigotry, and probably a spiteful resistance to being seen as caving in to the relativists.
The Grotesque Ban On Gays In New York’s St Patrick’s Day Parade|Michael Tomasky|March 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST

He describes himself on a train platform in Hanover, spiteful and sexually frustrated, throwing coins on the floor.
In Defense of Jonathan Franzen|Michelle Goldberg|September 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Subordinated as it is here rewritten, it does not half express the spiteful independence she assumed to teach Coppy a lesson.
English: Composition and Literature|W. F. (William Franklin) Webster
This was the first time he had smarted in his penetrable part—the skin—and it made him very spiteful.
It Is Never Too Late to Mend|Charles Reade
This sentence evidently cannot mean that a father may refuse food to his son if the latter is spiteful.
My Religion|Leo Tolstoy
He was not only terrified but angered, and whirling about, he brought down his gun with spiteful violence on the writhing body.
Two Boys in Wyoming|Edward S. Ellis
No one has yet enjoyed any spiteful fun at Mrs. Depew's expense though many were on the qui vive for entertainment.
The Onlooker, Volume 1, Part 2|Various

British Dictionary definitions for spiteful

spiteful

/ (ˈspaɪtfʊl) /

adjective

full of or motivated by spite; vindictive

Derived forms of spiteful

spitefully, adverbspitefulness, noun

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

spiteful

OTHER WORDS FOR spiteful

OPPOSITES FOR spiteful

Origin of spiteful

synonym study for spiteful

OTHER WORDS FROM spiteful

Words nearby spiteful

Words related to spiteful

How to use spiteful in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for spiteful

Derived forms of spiteful