sadism

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.

In other hands, a film of such unadorned fatalism might seem useless, an exercise in emotional sadism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

But the sadism is accompanied by a trollish glee that reads far more like a 13-year-old boy's failed attempts at humor than what one would expect from a 53-year-old businessman and father of 12.

From Salon • Feb. 24, 2025

Accusing her of cruelty and sadism without any proof, they appeared shortly after the Ukrainian army had liberated Kherson.

From BBC • Aug. 1, 2023

If the movie “X” could be described as “Boogie Nights” meets “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre,” then its prequel “Pearl” feels like watching Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” develop a penchant for sadism.

From Washington Post • Sep. 14, 2022

I don't know who invented the template for the standard writing workshop, but whoever it was seems to have struck the perfect balance between sadism and masochism.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris