ferocity

noun

Definition of ferocitynext
as in brutality
a very fierce or violent quality; the quality or state of being ferocious the ferocity of the attack The ferocity of the backlash took them by surprise.

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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 ferocity The increase in natural disasters — and the ferocity of them — can be largely attributed to climate change, according to the United States Geological Survey. — Carson Bonner, AJC.com, 7 Aug. 2026 Argentines will keep painting their faces, keep buying the shirt, keep loving this team with a ferocity that a bad week on X cannot touch. — Shann Biglione, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026 Unfortunately for them, passersby appeared to be much more concerned about the stifling 100-degree heat dome that settled over the city with particular ferocity. — Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2026 But its ferocity led right-wing broadcasters and influencers to start talking about a new kind of urban lawlessness enabled by liberal social policies. — Robert F. Worth, The Atlantic, 10 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for ferocity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ferocity
  1. brutality
  2. cruelty
  3. ferociousness
  4. fierceness
  5. murderousness
Noun
  • The army Mladic created to fight in Bosnia was a model of ruthlessness, daring and brutality in the Serb warrior tradition, once prized in the life-or-death partisan struggle against the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia in World War Two.
    — Ivana Sekularac, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Freya is the granddaughter of Athos — a dog who survived the Russian brutality in Bucha and was found on the street where Ukrainian forces destroyed a large Russian convoy, Danylchenko told the Associated Press in an interview.
    — Laurie Kellman, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of brutality
Noun
  • Law enforcement sources involved in the case told WJZ that the horse was being cared for by someone who is facing animal cruelty and abandonment charges in an unrelated case in West Virginia.
    — Tara Lynch, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
  • The real problem is the culture, and when culture rewards cruelty, the damage spreads.
    — Jodi Bondi Norgaard, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of cruelty
Noun
  • The ferociousness of the defending champs can be, has been, overwhelming for most.
    — Marcus Thompson II, New York Times, 19 May 2026
  • Here, sea level rise is accelerating at some of the most extreme rates on Earth, while hurricanes increasingly are swirling ashore with an unprecedented ferociousness.
    — Amy Green, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
Definition of ferociousness
Noun
  • Curled up in a chair on the top floor of The Times’ offices in El Segundo, looking down on the runways of LAX boiling in the late July sun, Williams gives runway fierceness against the beige office walls.
    — Maureen Lee Lenker, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The actress cranked the fierceness all the way up while appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on July 30.
    — Christina Perrier, InStyle, 31 July 2026
Definition of fierceness
Noun
  • The guy was a sleaze, but there’s a pretty big gap between sleaziness and murderousness.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Definition of murderousness

Browse Nearby Words

ferociousness
ferocity
ferret
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Cite this Entry

“Ferocity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ferocity. Accessed 31 Aug. 2026.

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