violent
Americanadjective
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acting with or characterized by uncontrolled, strong, rough force.
a violent earthquake.
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caused by injurious or destructive force.
a violent death.
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intense in force, effect, etc.; severe; extreme.
violent pain;
violent cold.
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roughly or immoderately vehement or ardent.
violent passions.
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furious in impetuosity, energy, etc..
violent haste.
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of, relating to, or constituting a distortion of meaning or fact.
adjective
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marked or caused by great physical force or violence
a violent stab
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(of a person) tending to the use of violence, esp in order to injure or intimidate others
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marked by intensity of any kind
a violent clash of colours
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characterized by an undue use of force; severe; harsh
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caused by or displaying strong or undue mental or emotional force
a violent tongue
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tending to distort the meaning or intent
a violent interpretation of the text
Other Word Forms
- overviolent adjective
- overviolentness noun
- quasi-violent adjective
- self-violent adjective
- ultraviolent adjective
- unviolent adjective
- violently adverb
Etymology
Origin of violent
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Latin violentus, equivalent to vi-, shortening (before a vowel) of base of vīs “force, violence” + -olentus, variant (after a vowel) of -ulentus -ulent
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.
Since switching to a new federal reporting system, the department includes more than just violent killings in its count.
From Los Angeles Times
Instead, the light came from glowing clouds of debris created by violent collisions.
From Science Daily
Assembly Bill 82 allows these providers to submit applications for increased privacy to the California secretary of state if they are experiencing harassment or violent threats due to the nature of their work.
From Los Angeles Times
Monday’s violent move sparked speculation that silver’s record-breaking run in 2025—its greatest yearly percentage gain since the inflationary shock of 1979—could be near its end.
The effect of the metanarrative is to juxtapose Byron’s violent passions with the careful, repressed behavior of one who hoped to capture him in literature.
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.
