hateful

adjective

hate·​ful ˈhāt-fəl 

1

: full of hate : malicious

2

: deserving of or arousing hate

hatefully

ˈhāt-fə-lē 

adverb

hatefulness noun

Synonyms of hateful

• malicious
• vicious
• cruel
• nasty

Examples of hateful in a Sentence

the girl's classmates were bullying her online, sending her hateful e-mails and text messages

Recent Examples on the Web

Ossoff went a step further, accusing Collins himself of amplifying hateful content and saying that his former congressional aide had intervened on behalf of a Holocaust denier. — AJC.com, 9 Oct. 2026

Online trolls posting hateful comments on social media don't establish how the crowd at Gainbridge behaves. — Dan Zaksheske Outkick, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026

In her final interview of the season, Clark denounced the hateful messages Mitchell says she's received on social media and urged the soon-to-be free agent to stay with the Indiana Fever for one more season. — ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026

Guangtian Ha, an associate professor of religion at Haverford, used at least four different X accounts to post dozens of threatening and hateful messages directed toward a peer, court documents show. — Tom Dougherty, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from hate hate entry 1 + -ful -ful entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for hateful

• ungrateful
• fateful
• grateful

Kids Definition

hateful

adjective

hate·​ful ˈhāt-fəl 

1

: full of hate : malicious

hateful enemies

2

: causing or deserving hate

a hateful crime

hatefully

-fə-lē 

adverb

hatefulness noun