as in cruelty
disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others
the gung ho heartlessness with which the secret police tortured prisoners was beyond belief
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Recent Examples of heartlessness
These young graduates start out naive about the heartlessness of the corporate world and harbor illusory hopes for success in unforgiving professions.
—
George Packer, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
The lives of the two children in the story, aged fourteen and four, are portrayed as being as fleeting as the fireflies, and the story is an unsentimental and unflinching account with moments of both tenderness and heartlessness.
—Ginny Tapley Takemori
september 4, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
George Packer, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
The lives of the two children in the story, aged fourteen and four, are portrayed as being as fleeting as the fireflies, and the story is an unsentimental and unflinching account with moments of both tenderness and heartlessness.
—Ginny Tapley Takemori
september 4, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heartlessness
Noun
-
Initially, the couple was arrested on charges of first-degree manslaughter, first-degree unlawful restraint, intentional cruelty to persons, risk of injury to a minor and conspiracy to commit risk of injury to a minor.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
28 Apr. 2026
-
There was a particular cruelty in having lived with her hearing for 28 years before losing it.—
Théoden Janes,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The result is that many people with civil claims are effectively unable to use the court system to help with such complaints as an abusive work environment, racial discrimination, environmental violations, police brutality or other issues handled by the federal courts.—
Sharon Bernstein,
Sacbee.com,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Something natural decay shares with human indifference and brutality—war, waste, and rot, literal and metaphorical.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heartlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heartlessness. Accessed 30 Apr. 2026.
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