cruel

[kroo-uhl] / ˈkru əl /

ADJECTIVE

vicious, pitiless; causing pain

Synonyms

STRONGEST

atrocious barbarous bitter brutal callous cold-blooded evil harsh hateful heartless inhuman inhumane merciless painful relentless ruthless sadistic spiteful tyrannical unkind vicious wicked

WEAK

bestial bloodthirsty brutish degenerate demoniac depraved excruciating ferocious fierce flinty hard hard-hearted hellish implacable inexorable malevolent monstrous pernicious poignant rancorous revengeful sinful unfeeling unnatural unrelenting vengeful virulent

Antonyms

STRONGEST

compassionate considerate decent easy feeling friendly gentle giving good helpful humane kind merciful mild moral nice pleasant pleasing polite sympathetic

WEAK

charitable thoughtful uncruel

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.

It's the cruel taunt thrown about by rival fans.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2026

Now he’s better known as the villain of “Art Fight,” a reality competition show where he took cruel pleasure destroying amateurs’ hopes.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 9, 2026

When Geoffrey Owens was photographed working at a Trader Joe’s in 2018, the reaction was swift, and, in many corners, cruel.

From Salon • Apr. 4, 2026

Given a slight tweak, “The Stranger” could be a film noir about a man who simply drifts along the currents of a cruel universe.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 2, 2026

When Roz lived on the island, winter had seemed like one long, cruel blizzard.

From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown

Vocabulary lists containing cruel

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