CUTTHROAT Synonyms: 59 Similar and Opposite Words

cutthroat 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of cutthroat

as in ruthless

not guided by or showing a concern for what is right cutthroat business practices intended to drive competitors out of business

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cutthroat

2 of 2

noun

ˈkət-ˌthrōt

as in assassin

a person who kills another person while traveling the ancient Silk Road, traders were constant prey to cutthroats and thieves

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of cutthroat

Adjective

The story plays out in New York’s cutthroat acting scene, where a talented Indian actor chasing his craft falls under the sway of Keitel’s teacher. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Oct. 2026 Economists expect Beijing to lean harder on stimulus to stabilize corporate profitability, as consolidation accelerates in sectors already facing sluggish demand, fierce competition and cutthroat price wars. — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 28 Sep. 2026

Noun

Coming off a cutthroat season that drew the most viewers back to the program in a decade, the competition coming this fall is already gearing up to be one for the books. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 18 June 2026 Knowing the history of the cutthroat beer wars of the past is required to understand King Snedley’s unexpected appearance. — Bill Swank, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for cutthroat

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cutthroat

Adjective

The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.

— Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 15 Oct. 2026
Facinelli plays the Boss, a ruthless figure whose cash ends up in the pool hustler’s hands, and intends to get it back, one way or another.

— Zac Ntim, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of ruthless

Noun

Jason Statham is back in action as former government assassin Adam Clay in the buzzy trailer for The Beekeeper 2, which Amazon MGM Studios dropped on Thursday.

— Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 15 Oct. 2026
The alleged plot targeting Pannun unfolded at the same time that Hardeep Singh Nijjar, another prominent Sikh separatist and friend of Pannun, was gunned down and killed in June 2023 by assassins outside his gurdwara in Surrey, British Columbia.

— Sarah N. Lynch, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of assassin

Adjective

And in a world increasingly populated by people who are absolutely certain that everyone who disagrees with them is either ignorant or immoral, our universities could use considerably more of all three.

— Rabbi Bruce D. Forman, Sun Sentinel, 13 Oct. 2026
Central to the exhibition is the tension between the honorable and the immoral, the appealing and the revolting.

— News Desk, Artforum, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of immoral

Noun

That’s because Kansas City’s five victories haven’t exactly come against a murderer’s row of opponents.

— Andy Scholes, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2026
Here, however, the show pulls a fast one, revealing that the murderer isn’t Pam, but instead a young girl named Grace (Gwendolyn Sundstrom).

— Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of murderer

Adjective

The most egregious perpetrators of fraud in the industry were corrupt doctors who were paid by patients to send insurance companies medical examination reports that omitted unfavorable findings.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2026
That unaffordability, Talarico argued at the nighttime rally in Texas that was packed with younger voters, is because billionaires and corrupt politicians have rigged the system.

— ABC News, ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of corrupt

Adjective

The district judge confined Biddy and most of the Black children in the county jail, ostensibly for their own protection from their unscrupulous enslaver.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Far from a local problem Some patients travel outside their home state to receive treatment, and unscrupulous rehab operators often recruit such patients.

— Ilan Shrira, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026