as in brute
having or showing the nature and appetites of a lower animal
as the months of recurrent combat dragged on, the daily existence of the soldiers became increasingly brutish
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Recent Examples of brutish
The pure of heart among you may recoil at the notion that anyone would sow brutish chaos, hurt vulnerable people and throw any semblance of democracy under the bus for a churlish, vicious distraction.
—
Pat Beall, Sun Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2025
Hardy has big blue eyes and a boyish-looking face, which balance out Luke’s brutish body language.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 31 July 2025
From the earliest days of Greek drama Herakles is ridiculed for his brutish way of eating his food, his preference for a good meal versus a good woman and, in Aristophanes’s The Bird, even his reluctance to leave a barbecue in order to help save his own father.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 25 July 2025
The silver lining in all of this, if there is one, is that a recognition of the nasty and brutish new normal may yet mobilize the political support needed to make a dent in global emissions.
—Veerabhadran Ramanathan, Foreign Affairs, 31 July 2018
See All Example Sentences for brutish
Pat Beall, Sun Sentinel, 14 Aug. 2025
Hardy has big blue eyes and a boyish-looking face, which balance out Luke’s brutish body language.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 31 July 2025
From the earliest days of Greek drama Herakles is ridiculed for his brutish way of eating his food, his preference for a good meal versus a good woman and, in Aristophanes’s The Bird, even his reluctance to leave a barbecue in order to help save his own father.
—John Mariani, Forbes.com, 25 July 2025
The silver lining in all of this, if there is one, is that a recognition of the nasty and brutish new normal may yet mobilize the political support needed to make a dent in global emissions.
—Veerabhadran Ramanathan, Foreign Affairs, 31 July 2018
See All Example Sentences for brutish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutish
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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Even for those in the North who didn’t care a damn for the four million held in brutal bondage, or those who wanted a soft, conciliatory approach, the war began to take on new and moral meaning.—
Jack Sheehan
September 4,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
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The trailer also showcases several brutal fights, an over-flowing oil emergency at the patch, a car accident, and Cami paying witness to two men taking down a third individual with their guns drawn.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Brutish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutish. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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