cruelness

noun

Definition of cruelnessnext
as in cruelty
disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others far from being healers, the doctors in the Nazi death camps were notable for their senseless cruelness

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cruelness But again, Kristen, this is – this is cruelness. — NBC news, 30 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cruelness
  1. cruelty
  2. brutality
Noun
  • The novel does not assign cruelty or compassion to any one community.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 July 2026
  • Investigators later obtained an arrest warrant for Peyton Leon Wyrick on a felony animal cruelty charge.
    — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 29 July 2026
Definition of cruelty
Noun
  • Crump and the family thanked the community for its support and encouraged people to continue to speak out against police brutality.
    — Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 24 July 2026
  • The novel also alludes to contemporary examples of violence in the country’s current, democratic system, gesturing to the ways in which brutality persists in Brazil as state and corporate power continue to commit violence with near impunity.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 24 July 2026
Definition of brutality

Browse Nearby Words

cruelly
cruelness
cruelty
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Cite this Entry

“Cruelness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cruelness. Accessed 31 Jul. 2026.

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