hatred

noun

ha·​tred ˈhā-trəd 

1

: extreme dislike or disgust : hate

2

: ill will or resentment that is usually mutual : prejudiced hostility or animosity

… old racial prejudices and national hatreds …

—Peter Thomson

Synonyms of hatred

• contempt
• hate
• distaste
• disdain
• loathing
• abhorrence
• detestation
• hostility
• spite
• abomination
• disgust

Examples of hatred in a Sentence

He had an irrational fear and hatred of foreigners.

She makes no attempt to conceal her hatred for her opponents.

This troubled city is filled with hatred, prejudice, crime, and fear.

The war was fueled by hatreds that were centuries old.

Recent Examples on the Web

At least one person was killed and four people were injured in a shooting near Paris that may have been motivated by Islamophobic hatred, French officials say. — Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026

Racial hatred and the demonization of Hindu gods have different sources and sometimes different voices, but on the first day of Navaratri, these forms of hate converged in a parking lot in Aurora. — Arun Brahmbhatt, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026

The immigration of people from an entirely different world, people with hatred in their hearts, has shattered that once great country. — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026

Underneath that façade was a sociopathic white supremacist neo-Nazi filled with hatred, fantasizing about mass murder nearly every day. — Asal Rezaei, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English hatrede, from hate hate entry 1 + -rede, suffix denoting state or quality, going back to Old English -rǣden — more at kindred entry 2

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing hatred

• self-hatred

Kids Definition

hatred

noun

ha·​tred ˈhā-trəd 

: hate entry 1 sense 1