violent
Americanadjective
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acting with or characterized by uncontrolled, strong, rough force.
a violent earthquake.
-
caused by injurious or destructive force.
a violent death.
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intense in force, effect, etc.; severe; extreme.
violent pain;
violent cold.
-
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
-
marked or caused by great physical force or violence
a violent stab
-
(of a person) tending to the use of violence, esp in order to injure or intimidate others
-
marked by intensity of any kind
a violent clash of colours
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characterized by an undue use of force; severe; harsh
-
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.
The survey, which goes to a representative sampling of U.S. households, found the rate of violent victimization hadn’t fallen.
Did Peggy spark the violent ire of someone she harshly criticized in her role of “agony aunt”? Or might her opposition to the building of an expensive real-estate development have prompted her death?
A violent planetary collision could easily generate that level of heat.
From Science Daily
"Our policies prohibit our AIs from promoting or facilitating violent acts and we're constantly working to make our tools even better."
From Barron's
The IDF said soldiers and police were dispatched to the scene after reports of a violent confrontation between Israelis and Palestinians.
From BBC
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.
