1
as in horror
the quality of inspiring intense dread or dismay
the undeniable atrocity of the forced march of Cherokees known as the Trail of Tears
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in badness
the state or quality of being utterly evil
was appalled by the atrocity of Stalin's mass executions
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in cruelty
disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others
wars often unleash a level of atrocity that would be unimaginable in peacetime
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of atrocity
Satellite images analyzed by the Humanitarian Research Lab at Yale School of Public Health and verified by CNN show clear evidence of the atrocities in El Fasher.
—
Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
Whether the atrocities of the RSF and SAF are comparable is an open question.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 30 Oct. 2025
The Sudanese Army withdrew from a key city in Darfur now under the control of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, sparking fears of mass atrocities by the group, which has reportedly received backing from the UAE.
—Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Mantell, Felker-Martin tells me, was a Polish resistance photographer who was captured by Nazi soldiers while documenting their atrocities and imprisoned in Auschwitz for a year.
—Samantha Riedel, Them., 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for atrocity
Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2025
Whether the atrocities of the RSF and SAF are comparable is an open question.
—Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 30 Oct. 2025
The Sudanese Army withdrew from a key city in Darfur now under the control of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, sparking fears of mass atrocities by the group, which has reportedly received backing from the UAE.
—Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 29 Oct. 2025
Mantell, Felker-Martin tells me, was a Polish resistance photographer who was captured by Nazi soldiers while documenting their atrocities and imprisoned in Auschwitz for a year.
—Samantha Riedel, Them., 29 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for atrocity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atrocity
Noun
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To our minds, Wednesday's horror, those kids who lost a mother, should supplant the inevitable circling of the ideological wagons and the parsing of the different angles of pictures taken at the scene.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Jan. 2026
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But the harder the novice looks — and the greater the chaos inside them longing for order, even of a diabolical nature — the more clearly the horror will appear.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
9 Jan. 2026
Noun
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As if to prove that it can’t be exceeded in badness, Playdate has both.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The American people must reject this cruelty and extremism.—
Ali Bauman,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Does their lack of kindness grant you permission to respond with equal insensitivity or even cruelty?—
Michael Isaacson,
Sun Sentinel,
6 Jan. 2026
Noun
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For some residents, Good’s killing reopened deep wounds in a city still reckoning with the police murder of George Floyd, which occurred just blocks away in May 2020 and sparked nationwide protests against police brutality.—
Nicole Acevedo,
NBC news,
10 Jan. 2026
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Captured on video, the incident would bring national tensions over police brutality to a head, igniting months of demonstrations around the country.—
Marc Ramirez,
USA Today,
10 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
On the farthest rung of awfulness, the New York Jets became the first team in NFL history to go an entire season without intercepting a pass.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
6 Jan. 2026
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Hence the modest point spread despite Jets’ awfulness.—
Greg Cote
January 1,
Miami Herald,
1 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
That was really what helped me into the character and into her evilness.—
William Earl,
Variety,
4 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Atrocity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atrocity. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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