as in cruelty
disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others
more than one reluctant dental patient has been tempted to level the charge of barbarity against their dentist
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Recent Examples of barbarity
Putin’s quasi-genocidal barbarities in Ukraine and Xi’s industrial-scale repression in Xinjiang threaten to restore a world of autocratic impunity and rampant atrocity.
—
Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Although lynchings have steadily increased in number and barbarity during the last twenty years, there has been no single effort put forth by the many moral and philanthropic forces of the country to put a stop to this wholesale slaughter.
—Liz Tracey, JSTOR Daily, 21 Feb. 2025
The massacre was celebrated in Western capitals, with protests erupting in support of Hamas’s barbarity.
—William C. Daroff, Sun Sentinel, 11 Dec. 2024
The Illusion of Destiny Why is the world racked by barbarity and violence?
—Foreign Affairs, 8 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for barbarity
Hal Brands, Foreign Affairs, 25 Feb. 2025
Although lynchings have steadily increased in number and barbarity during the last twenty years, there has been no single effort put forth by the many moral and philanthropic forces of the country to put a stop to this wholesale slaughter.
—Liz Tracey, JSTOR Daily, 21 Feb. 2025
The massacre was celebrated in Western capitals, with protests erupting in support of Hamas’s barbarity.
—William C. Daroff, Sun Sentinel, 11 Dec. 2024
The Illusion of Destiny Why is the world racked by barbarity and violence?
—Foreign Affairs, 8 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for barbarity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for barbarity
Noun
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Perhaps the surprise return of Egghead Vance will turn it into symbol of resistance, seen at every demonstration against the cruelties and greed of the Trump machine.—
Miles Klee,
Rolling Stone,
25 June 2025
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Other laws set to take effect on July 1 in Florida include House Bill 255, establishing harsher penalties for animal cruelty, and House Bill 653, setting new aggravating factors when determining whether someone convicted of a capital felony should receive the death penalty.—
Jenna Sundel,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 June 2025
Noun
-
Pellegrino does get into the brutality of the Japanese forces.—
Mike Fleming Jr,
Deadline,
27 June 2025
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Yet, in the nearly two years since then, the brutality and intensity of Israel’s military campaign in the Gaza Strip have mobilized opposition around the world.—
Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib,
The Atlantic,
26 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Barbarity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/barbarity. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.
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