despiteful

adjective

di-ˈspīt-fəl How to pronounce despiteful (audio)
Definition of despitefulnext
as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it despiteful treatment of his poor relations during their visit

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for despiteful
  1. malicious
  2. cruel
  3. vicious
  4. hateful
Adjective
  • These errors can cause crashes or enable attackers to exploit memory vulnerabilities, risking data corruption or executing malicious code.
    — Davey Winder, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
  • Elijah Bieniemy, who is 27 and is a graduate of Olathe Northwest High School, has been charged with malicious wounding, use of a firearm during the commission of a felony and discharge of a firearm inside of a dwelling.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 31 July 2026
Definition of malicious
Adjective
  • Who could be so cruel as to cut off their family from the family plan?
    — Elisabeth Buchwald, CNN Money, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Influencer culture didn’t exist yet, but some designers were cruel and catty, even without the current omnipresent evil of social media.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 31 July 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • The drastic measures Alice takes to end this vicious cycle naturally bring her closer to Catherine’s school of violent retribution.
    — Alison Herman, Variety, 27 July 2026
  • Despite the powerful action and vicious fight scenes the franchise is known for, Laufey is still shaping up as a bit of a love story.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 25 July 2026
Definition of vicious
Adjective
  • Yes, discipline, which is not a heavy and hateful word, because discipline is what frees us.
    — Ronda Racha Penrice, HollywoodReporter, 31 July 2026
  • The goal isn’t to eliminate every harmful post or hateful idea.
    — Larry Magid, Mercury News, 30 July 2026
Definition of hateful
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.

Browse Nearby Words

despite
despiteful
despitefully
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Despiteful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despiteful. Accessed 6 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of torpor

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

How long is a jiffy?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
asap street sign
Figure Out These Acronyms ASAP You don't have to be a NASA engineer to get these...
See All