barbaric

adjective

bar·​bar·​ic bär-ˈber-ik 

-ˈba-rik

1

a

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a group of people who are alien to another land, culture, or people and who are usually believed to be inferior : of, relating to, or characteristic of barbarians

b

: possessing or characteristic of a cultural level more complex than primitive (see primitive entry 1 sense 2c) culture but less sophisticated than advanced civilization (see civilization sense 1a)

2

a

: marked by a lack of restraint : wild

a barbaric use of color

b

: having a bizarre, primitive, or unsophisticated quality

… I sound my barbaric yawp …

—Walt Whitman

the tangled, loose barbaric magnificence of the Elizabethan drama

—Think

3

: barbarous sense 3

barbaric crimes

barbarically

bär-ˈber-i-k(ə-)lē 

-ˈba-ri-

adverb

Synonyms of barbaric

• brutal
• cruel
• savage
• vicious
• ruthless

Examples of barbaric in a Sentence

Barbaric tribes invaded the area.

His table manners are barbaric.

They considered the custom barbaric.

The treatment of the prisoners was positively barbaric.

Recent Examples on the Web

During the Middle Ages, for example, many contemporary accounts from both Christian and Muslim societies depicted their opposing side as barbaric, blasphemous, and inferior. —Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 19 Mar. 2026

Reports say Mohammadi was killed in a public hanging seen as a barbaric move by the Iranian regime to snuff out the ongoing movement seeking to topple it, according to Iranian American human rights activists and dissidents. —Benjamin Weinthal, FOXNews.com, 19 Mar. 2026

What kind of barbaric regime puts a school for little girls in a compound that used to be military? —Arkansas Online, 14 Mar. 2026

Is there any knowing what would have happened, had these crimes not been captured in all their barbaric glory? —Literary Hub, 4 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Rhymes for barbaric

• amharic
• pindaric
• barrack
• isobaric

Kids Definition

barbaric

adjective

bar·​bar·​ic bär-ˈbar-ik 

1

: of, relating to, or characteristic of barbarians

2

: cruel sense 2, savage