as in brutality
disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others
centuries after he ravaged Europe, Attila the Hun remains notorious for his cruelty
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Recent Examples of cruelty
That officer, whose case has since been dismissed, was charged with two counts of willful cruelty to a child.
—
Rebecca Ellis, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Criminal charges for animal cruelty and abandonment have reportedly been filed after three emaciated dogs were found abandoned at a Walker County, Georgia, cemetery — including one barely alive inside a drainage pipe, weighing just 10 pounds.
—Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
The discovery led to criminal charges for animal cruelty and abandonment.
—Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2026
Brewer, memorable from The Handmaid’s Tale, initially gives Becky a sort of fragile, in-need-of-protection aura, a welcome respite from the casual cruelty and sophisticated bite of the repartee in which Max and even Suzanna engage.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cruelty
Rebecca Ellis, Los Angeles Times, 7 Apr. 2026
Criminal charges for animal cruelty and abandonment have reportedly been filed after three emaciated dogs were found abandoned at a Walker County, Georgia, cemetery — including one barely alive inside a drainage pipe, weighing just 10 pounds.
—Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 6 Apr. 2026
The discovery led to criminal charges for animal cruelty and abandonment.
—Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 6 Apr. 2026
Brewer, memorable from The Handmaid’s Tale, initially gives Becky a sort of fragile, in-need-of-protection aura, a welcome respite from the casual cruelty and sophisticated bite of the repartee in which Max and even Suzanna engage.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for cruelty
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cruelty
Noun
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Yet, while Munro’s denial was a horrible violence, Fremlin’s deplorable acts were the original brutality.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Apr. 2026
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Nominations in the news, public service and radio/podcast categories span networks, from PBS to ABC and NBC News, with topics ranging from the Los Angeles wildfires to the war in Gaza, immigration and police brutality.—
Brande Victorian,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The company's pictures have been used to help track atrocities in Syria, document previous attacks by Iran, and chronicle Israel's destruction of Gaza.—
Geoff Brumfiel,
NPR,
10 Apr. 2026
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By compiling a vast database of this material and sharing it through impactful social videos, the project has reached millions, providing vital eyewitness testimonies and interactive resources to document the atrocities faced by the people of Gaza.—
Hilary Lewis,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cruelty.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cruelty. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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