as in ruthless
not guided by or showing a concern for what is right
cutthroat business practices intended to drive competitors out of business
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
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Recent Examples of cutthroat
Natasha Lindstaedt, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
This season, Jeremy Irons, William Jackson Harper, Aaron Pierre, and Marion Cotillard will all join the show’s cutthroat world of TV news.
—Lucy Ford, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
Michael Saponara, Billboard, 19 Aug. 2025
Plus, the cutthroat strategizing resulted in a dramatic (read: hilarious) rose ceremony.
—EW.com, 19 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cutthroat
Adjective
Kim Yo-jong initially pursued fake peace overtures but is now more interested in directly escalating tensions with South Korea- to cultivate a cutthroat image to North Korean elite and the world.
—Natasha Lindstaedt, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
This season, Jeremy Irons, William Jackson Harper, Aaron Pierre, and Marion Cotillard will all join the show’s cutthroat world of TV news.
—Lucy Ford, Time, 28 Aug. 2025
Noun
His honeyed flows quickly turn to menacing street tales, narrating his cutthroat rise in Zone 6.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 19 Aug. 2025
Plus, the cutthroat strategizing resulted in a dramatic (read: hilarious) rose ceremony.
—EW.com, 19 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for cutthroat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cutthroat
Adjective
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Hunted by the ruthless crime boss that Don worked for and learned all the boss’s sinister secrets — Perlman plays him — Don has a reason to seek redemption.—
Mike Fleming Jr,
Deadline,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Witness Alex Hales’ ruthless removal.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Noun
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With the help of an unpredictable assassin named Louie (Butler, who also plays the Pope), the pair embark on a dark and murderous journey to steal and authenticate the priceless work.—
Nada Aboul Kheir,
Deadline,
3 Sep. 2025
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The two Kill Bill films, while still about crime and criminals and ninja assassins, set themselves apart from his earlier works.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Ladapo said the decision was not reached according to the data, but instead on his view that vaccine mandates are immoral and outside the scope of the government’s authority.—
Sarah Fortinsky,
The Hill,
7 Sep. 2025
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Even the paper’s biggest triumph—which, without giving too much away, brings it into direct conflict with its toilet-paper stablemate—involves a farcically immoral compromise that tramples the church-state divide between news and product sales (and, worse, isn’t all that funny).—
Jon Allsop,
New Yorker,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Quadruple murderer Bryan Kohberger claimed in court documents that he was diagnosed with four mental health disorders in the months leading up to his guilty plea in the killings of four University of Idaho students.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
5 Sep. 2025
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There is nothing here that indicates, as the late Professor Harbage has well said, that in order to be king hereafter Macbeth must be murderer first.—
Emily Zarevich,
JSTOR Daily,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The story of corrupt small-town cops taking on a former Marine was written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier and stars Aaron Pierre, Don Johnson and AnnaSophia Robb.—
Jack Smart,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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Delegates and party leaders described it as a corrupt and hypocritical maneuver from the governor.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Woman of the Hour In her directorial debut, Anna Kendrick stars as aspiring actress Sheryl Bradshaw, who unknowingly crosses paths with a covert serial killer (Daniel Zovatto) while appearing on The Dating Game.—
Jacqueline Weiss,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
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Compelling as that is, the mystery of Roman's whereabouts is nearly overshadowed by the arrival of a serial killer that's equal parts Jigsaw and the Riddler.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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There are also parallels with the seemingly unscrupulous corporate CEOs.—
Ed Meza,
Variety,
2 Sep. 2025
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In the eighth season of Rick and Morty, our unscrupulous genius and his teenage companion get into lots more scraps featuring virtual realities, the Easter Bunny, and an entire planet full of their clones.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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In the past, that’s opened small businesses to frivolous lawsuits filed by unprincipled lawyers that file massive lawsuits and offer quick settlements.—
Erica Goldstein,
Boston Herald,
9 Sep. 2025
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Rule by ‘ambitious, and unprincipled men’ Partisanship is the primary problem for the American republic, according to Washington.—
Robert A. Strong,
The Conversation,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cutthroat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cutthroat. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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