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
Rather than a continued brutal power play, which will leave no winners, hopefully the confrontation between the Fed and the administration will move toward some such compromise.
—
Raghuram Rajan, Time, 23 Jan. 2026
Grocery shoppers seeking to stock up ahead of the brutal winter storm this weekend found shelves already empty from Washington to North Carolina.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 23 Jan. 2026
From Agnes’ brutal childbirth scenes to the wrenching heartbreak when the plague hits their household and takes 11-year-old Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe), Zhao immerses you in Agnes and Will’s grief while also touching on their own individual internal tussles.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Jan. 2026
In Oregon in 1933, Samuel Murphy is torn from his daughter and sent to a brutal work camp.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brutal
Raghuram Rajan, Time, 23 Jan. 2026
Grocery shoppers seeking to stock up ahead of the brutal winter storm this weekend found shelves already empty from Washington to North Carolina.
—Phil Helsel, NBC news, 23 Jan. 2026
From Agnes’ brutal childbirth scenes to the wrenching heartbreak when the plague hits their household and takes 11-year-old Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe), Zhao immerses you in Agnes and Will’s grief while also touching on their own individual internal tussles.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 22 Jan. 2026
In Oregon in 1933, Samuel Murphy is torn from his daughter and sent to a brutal work camp.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 22 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brutal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutal
Adjective
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Two-thirds of the population are living in tents, struggling to survive an extremely harsh winter.—
Sarah Ferguson,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
The cold temperatures will create some harsh driving conditions, especially when combined with snow.—
Terell Bailey,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The Moon is at odds with three planets, which can trigger arguments, snide remarks and even cruel retorts.—
Georgia Nicols,
Denver Post,
25 Jan. 2026
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An old 4chan meme designed as a cruel caricature has somehow become the face of clueless commentators asking for context.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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As the sector transitions from the initial brute-force stage of training large models to the challenge of running them affordably and efficiently on a large scale, designers are dividing into rival factions.—
Trefis Team,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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Thousands of scientific minds have, by brute force or something subtler, left the National Institutes of Health, the Food and Drug Administration, and academia.—
Ellen Cushing,
The Atlantic,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The strategy would give OpenAI a direct hardware presence to complement its software and nearly a billion weekly users of ChatGPT, but faces tough competition from entrenched products without deep operating-system integration.—
Charlie Fink,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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The marketing and positioning of actresses in their roles is tougher than it’s been in recent years because of the insult machinery of man-boy social media and its echoes across society more widely.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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As late as the 9th century, Canis Major was pictured as a fierce, vicious hunting dog.—
Joe Rao,
Space.com,
23 Jan. 2026
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That kind of improvement could help avoid a worst-case scenario the Fed has been desperate to avoid, one where expectations for high inflation trigger a vicious cycle of behavior that only worsens inflation.—
Stan Choe,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Women were crucial participants in the 1979 revolution that overthrew the last Shah (king) of Iran and his oppressive rule.—
Ellie Austin,
Fortune,
21 Jan. 2026
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When you’re surrounded by lush green leaves and bathed in natural light, winter feels less oppressive.—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Sons of Anarchy was praised for its stellar writing, operatic plotting, and cast of actors who breathed vivid life into their characters, giving even the most savage moments a dose of humanity.—
Declan Gallagher,
Entertainment Weekly,
16 Jan. 2026
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This league is a savage league.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
22 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Those same catalysts contributed to the searing inflation that drove the Consumer Price Index to a 40-year high in 2022.—
Aimee Picchi,
CBS News,
22 Jan. 2026
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Jafar Panahi’s searing (and often funny) social critique of authoritarianism did not fare well on the Oscar or BAFTA early lists.—
Glenn Whipp,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Brutal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutal. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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