1
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
a heartless boss who would fire people for missing work, even if they were sick as a dog
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cruel
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
his heartless whipping of runaway slaves virtually to the point of death shocked even other slave owners
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heartless
This vile, heartless remark is completely unacceptable—especially from someone entrusted with our children.
—
Amy Delaura, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
Democrats saw an opportunity to portray her as selfish and heartless, willing to manipulate the legal system at the expense of grieving children.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
The first four episodes of season 2 crept onto Netflix earlier this month, throwing our favorite heartless teenager (played by Jenna Ortega) headfirst into a new mystery, complete with secret experiments, ravenous zombies, and a spat of unsettling bird murders.
—Allison Degrushe Published, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
The heartless subway mugger who slashed and badly wounded a woman on an empty Manhattan train car will stay locked up following his arrest late last week.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heartless
Amy Delaura, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
Democrats saw an opportunity to portray her as selfish and heartless, willing to manipulate the legal system at the expense of grieving children.
—Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 18 Aug. 2025
The first four episodes of season 2 crept onto Netflix earlier this month, throwing our favorite heartless teenager (played by Jenna Ortega) headfirst into a new mystery, complete with secret experiments, ravenous zombies, and a spat of unsettling bird murders.
—Allison Degrushe Published, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
The heartless subway mugger who slashed and badly wounded a woman on an empty Manhattan train car will stay locked up following his arrest late last week.
—Nicholas Williams, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heartless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heartless
Adjective
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The ruthless conglomerate's logo, base, ships, and equipment are featured throughout the film, in addition to the synths themselves.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Nov. 2025
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Earlier stories in that newspaper described López Torres as a ruthless trafficker who has killed dozens and was earlier aligned with Colombia’s right-wing paramilitary forces, known as the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or the Spanish acronym AUC.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
That is unacceptably cruel, corrupt, and undemocratic.—
Brie Stimson,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
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Instead, she was stripped of her bronze medal after a late score inquiry—a ruling that still feels cruel for an athlete who had delivered the performance of her life.—
Essence,
Essence,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Following the deaths of his brother William (Felix Kammerer) and his sister-in-law Elizabeth (Mia Goth), Victor vows vengeance on the Creature and dedicates the rest of his life to a merciless pursuit of him.—
Yasmeen Hamadeh,
PEOPLE,
7 Nov. 2025
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The book, which is from Australia, follows Bee and her fellow runaways, who discover a new friend, Paco, is a Lost Boy from Neverland who needs them to fight hordes of pirates led by a merciless new leader.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Between wading or boating into choppy surf, baking in the hot sun, and getting doused in salty spray, the elements are brutal on the human body and the gear meant to withstand them.—
Francesca Krempa,
Outside,
9 Jan. 2026
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Phạm Lockwood also spoke with Huan Nguyen, the sole survivor of a massacre of a South Vietnamese family in Saigon, a brutal attack allegedly orchestrated by Capt.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Without prosecutors empowered to bring charges against wrongdoers, judges willing to strike down overreach, legislators daring enough to demand investigations and change laws, and citizens outraged enough to protest, any revelations by journalists will fall on stony ground.—
Susan Chira,
Foreign Affairs,
2 Dec. 2025
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After that historic journey, NASA charted a new course toward Apophis, a stony metal-rich NEA that offers a sharp scientific contrast to Bennu's carbon-rich composition (and was once thought to pose a serious impact risk to Earth).—
Samantha Mathewson,
Space.com,
28 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Officials charged Damon Leanord of Pleasanton, Kansas, with interference with law enforcement, having a vicious dog at large and criminal desecration of a body in Linn County and abandonment of a corpse charges in Bates County, Missouri, after finding the child’s body at the bottom of a creek bed.—
Sofi Zeman
January 6,
Kansas City Star,
6 Jan. 2026
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He was shocked in 2013 when he was struck by vicious bouts of vomiting.—
Robert McCoppin,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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This league is a savage league.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
22 Dec. 2025
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The fifth-place finisher also reveals the inspiration for her savage jury question to Savannah.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
18 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Heartless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heartless. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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