1
as in harsh
difficult to endure
brutal hard labor in the hot sun
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cruel
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
a brutal tyrant who drove his country to revolt
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in brute
having or showing the nature and appetites of a lower animal
a coarse, brutal man who has no sense of what it means to be refined or sensitive or cultured
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of brutal
The contraction has been particularly brutal for Hollywood’s production assistants, many of whom are feeling stuck at what is supposed to be the starting line of their careers.
—
Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
That flight home is gonna be brutal.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Sep. 2025
But the party ended not long after kickoff, in a brutal blowout loss that managed to erase nine months of hope and hype in a single 60-minute package.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
The upcoming winter is predicted to be brutal for New York City, with snow expected before Halloween and multiple major storms on the lineup.
—Chloe Sorvino, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutal
Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2025
That flight home is gonna be brutal.
—Lawrence Dow, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 4 Sep. 2025
But the party ended not long after kickoff, in a brutal blowout loss that managed to erase nine months of hope and hype in a single 60-minute package.
—Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 3 Sep. 2025
The upcoming winter is predicted to be brutal for New York City, with snow expected before Halloween and multiple major storms on the lineup.
—Chloe Sorvino, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutal
Adjective
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The once-beloved pastels will become harsh.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
6 Sep. 2025
-
The pilgrimage, listed on the official calendar of jubilee events, comes as gay Catholics look to Pope Leo XIV to continue down the bold path of his predecessor to welcome into the church a group that has in the past faced alienation and sometimes harsh treatment.—
Christopher Lamb,
CNN Money,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Because of the cruel math of throughput and utilization, over ten days, only three hundred people experienced Blur.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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Tamra was awful to Gretchen back then, culminating in the Naked Wasted Party, which was one of the cruelest things to ever happen on Housewives.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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When Quantum Might Win The intuition machine demonstrates better performance than the logic engine in specific domains through its ability to restructure learning processes rather than using brute force methods.—
Sadhasivam Mohanadas,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
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Oddly, that wouldn't be a problem if fusion plants were already abundant because there'd be so much surplus power that brute force methods could be used to produce tritium.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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That’s a tough dichotomy to bridge, but the new 2025 911 Carrera GTS achieves it brilliantly.—
Mark Phelan,
USA Today,
7 Sep. 2025
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The tough stainless steel loops are reinforced and designed to remain rust-free even after years of use, and a three number combination lock will be easy to remember and difficult to crack.—
Merrell Readman,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Once infected, the body demands even more energy to fend off infection, leading to a vicious cycle.—
Michal Ruprecht,
NPR,
8 Sep. 2025
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Masked country crooner Orville Peck will keep his face covered while playing Vega, the vicious fighter who uses metal claws as one of his weapons.—
Christopher Rudolph,
PEOPLE,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Related Stories Farrelly thinks that kind of oppressive political correctness is fading and that audiences are eager to see movies that eviscerate good taste in order to land a joke again.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
5 Sep. 2025
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Pitted against the unforgettably evil Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher), a sadist who drugs and abuses the unlucky patients in her care, McMurphy’s stand against the oppressive powers that be is tragic and poignant and spoke to the spirit of a time in which so many felt misunderstood.—
Christina Newland,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This thrilling prequel stars Anya Taylor-Joy as Furiosa and Alyla Browne as young Furiosa, who is abducted by the savage warlord Dementus (Chris Hemsworth) — leader of the Biker Horde — and spends the next decade in captivity plotting her revenge and escape.—
Charlotte Walsh,
People.com,
1 Sep. 2025
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There was a time when loving someone of the wrong gender could result in harassment, arrest or a savage beating.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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There’s a significant battery life tax to pay for the microLED model’s searing brightness, too.—
Andrew Williams,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
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But the gifted Argentinian auteur has never tackled the issue as directly as in Landmarks (Nuestra Tierra), a searing and detailed chronicle of murder, bigotry and robbery on a massive scale that also marks the director’s first feature-length documentary.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Brutal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutal. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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