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

For my 41st birthday, an especially sadistic buddy gave me a video of me falling off my skateboard nearly 160 times.

—Bret Anthony Johnston

sadistically

sə-ˈdi-sti-k(ə-)lē 

 also  sā-

 or  sa-

adverb

… in a gangster story realism requires that the hoods kill each other off and do so sadistically.

—Robert F. Moss

Synonyms

• brutal
• cruel
• vicious
• savage
• ruthless

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

Yet, instead of protesting in the streets condemning Hamas’ sadistic butchery and demanding the terror group release its hostages and leave the Gaza Strip so that the Palestinian people may crawl out from beneath its rancid thumb, the American left focuses its ire on Israel instead. —Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 7 Aug. 2025

That might sound like a typically sadistic revenge thriller a la The Glory. —Geoffrey Bunting, Time, 1 Aug. 2025

The sadistic Fiend will loom in the shadows and beckon all who pass to let him in. —Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 29 July 2025

Along the way, guests will be stalked by the eerie presence of The Fiend, Bray's sadistic alter ego, who looms within the shadows and beckons them to let him in. —Simon Thompson, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1892, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for sadistic

• artistic
• autistic
• ballistic
• cladistic
• heuristic
• holistic
• linguistic
• logistic
• monistic
• patristic
• simplistic
• sophistic