as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it
the girl's classmates were bullying her online, sending her hateful e-mails and text messages
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hateful
The causes of the spikes in antisemitic attacks and other hateful conduct are complex and longstanding, experts say.
—
ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026
Flanked by faith leaders, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard spoke to reporters Thursday, March 19, saying that hate against Jewish people is a serious problem that needs to be curbed because hateful rhetoric can lead to violence.
—Niraj Warikoo, Freep.com, 20 Mar. 2026
But there also are fears that the focus on Israel is the leading edge of an antisemitic fringe that has gained ground by portraying Jews as shadowy manipulators, echoing some of history’s most hateful tropes.
—Thomas Beaumont, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Dark humor and action are contrasted with the hateful rhetoric of the government and the indifference of the fictional show’s producers to create a unique proposition on the international TV market.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hateful
ABC News, 24 Mar. 2026
Flanked by faith leaders, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard spoke to reporters Thursday, March 19, saying that hate against Jewish people is a serious problem that needs to be curbed because hateful rhetoric can lead to violence.
—Niraj Warikoo, Freep.com, 20 Mar. 2026
But there also are fears that the focus on Israel is the leading edge of an antisemitic fringe that has gained ground by portraying Jews as shadowy manipulators, echoing some of history’s most hateful tropes.
—Thomas Beaumont, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2026
Dark humor and action are contrasted with the hateful rhetoric of the government and the indifference of the fictional show’s producers to create a unique proposition on the international TV market.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hateful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hateful
Adjective
-
In worst-case scenarios, malicious code can exploit weaknesses in your phone, create backdoor access and pull in even more data without your knowledge.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
9 Apr. 2026
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Over a four-week period starting on December 12, Black Lotus observed more than 290,000 distinct IP addresses sending at least one DNS request to the malicious APT28 DNS resolver.—
Dan Goodin,
ArsTechnica,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The wereboar growled next to Black Pudding, a hulking vicious monster, both focused on ripping Puck and Cordelia to shreds.—
Jaclyn Cosgrove,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The childishness of his expressions infantilized a genuinely vicious regime, painting it as more peevish than petrifying.—
Fintan O’Toole,
The New York Review of Books,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Dahl’s books are fanciful and imaginative, but also dark, cynical, and mean (and, unfortunately, often reflected his real-life ugliness), spinning stories in which gruesome and unpleasant fates befell rotten kids, and adults were frequently selfish, cruel, and not to be trusted.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
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Violating that trust is both cruel and unlawful.—
DeJanay Booth-Singleton,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Bisontis’ pass-protection profile doesn’t need a publicist, but his ceiling depends on how much nastier and more consistent the run-blocking becomes.—
Eddie Brown,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Andoni Iraola’s side is nasty to play against.—
Jackie Powell,
NBC news,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hateful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hateful. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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