sadistic
adjective
sa·dis·tic
sə-ˈdi-stik 
also sā-,
or sa-
: of, relating to, or characterized by sadism
sadistic fantasies
: taking pleasure in the infliction of pain, punishment, or humiliation on others
a leg … sawed off in sections by a sadistic surgeon—
The New Yorker
The New YorkerFor my 41st birthday, an especially sadistic buddy gave me a video of me falling off my skateboard nearly 160 times.—Bret Anthony Johnston
Bret Anthony Johnston
sadistically
adverb
… in a gangster story realism requires that the hoods kill each other off and do so sadistically.
—Robert F. Moss
Robert F. Moss
Examples of sadistic in a Sentence
the troubled youth is being treated by a psychotherapist for his sadistic urges to hurt animals
Recent Examples on the Web
The defendant exhibited sadistic traits, Salter said.
—Dakin Andone, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025
Actors dressed as sadistic guards and disturbed prisoners, jump-scaring visitors from the prison cells.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025
The movie goes back to the beginning and shows the traumatic childhood that caused Leatherface to become a sadistic chainsaw-wielding killer.
—Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
Violence is for getting your way; for asserting your existence as an individual or a group; for venting torrential feeling; for sadistic pleasure.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
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Dakin Andone, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2025
Actors dressed as sadistic guards and disturbed prisoners, jump-scaring visitors from the prison cells.
—Phaedra Trethan, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025
The movie goes back to the beginning and shows the traumatic childhood that caused Leatherface to become a sadistic chainsaw-wielding killer.
—Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 25 Oct. 2025
Violence is for getting your way; for asserting your existence as an individual or a group; for venting torrential feeling; for sadistic pleasure.
—David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
Cite this Entry
“Sadistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sadistic. Accessed 2 Nov. 2025.
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