HEINOUS Synonyms: 128 Similar and Opposite Words

heinous

adjective

Definition of heinous

as in horrific

very bad or evil; deserving of hate or contempt These murders were especially heinous. the heinous brutality of the attack

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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 heinous In the end, on charges related to often heinous crimes — committed over more than a decade at a massive, multinational scale — only 6,487 Germans were convicted, according to McKale. — Fern Schumer Chapman, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026 By the end of the film, Steve is revealed to be Afton, who wears an animatronic bunny suit while committing his heinous crimes. — Britt Hayes, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026 New York summers are heinous and oppressive; there was a week where the temperature remained above 94 degrees. — Tamim Alnuweiri, InStyle, 25 July 2026 In a statement, Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle pointed out how two juries recommended Andres be sentenced to death — and two judges imposed the ultimate punishment — for the heinous crime. — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for heinous

Recent Examples of Synonyms for heinous

Adjective

Thompson, then 23, and Rocco James Surace, then 30, beat Ivester with chains, burned her with cigarettes and assaulted her with a chair leg during the horrific ordeal inside the Sunny Isles Motel, 16375 Biscayne Blvd.

— Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 14 Sep. 2026
Indications of this are when Covid starts to overwhelm the hospital and Maya is in the center of this horrific pandemic.

— Pete Hammond, Deadline, 13 Sep. 2026

Definition of horrific

Adjective

The Menendez brothers, imprisoned 37 years in the gruesome murder of their parents, are getting a second shot at freedom.

— Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 10 Sep. 2026
Simply to give us the gruesome scene of the kid convulsing to death while leaking blood from his eyes, nose, and mouth.

— Chris Klimek, Vulture, 9 Sep. 2026

Definition of gruesome

Adjective

That whole sequence with Troy and Susan at the start of this episode is just … shocking.

— Noel Murray, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026
Other films have handled the shocking deaths of romantic leads with more grace — Anne Hathaway riding her bike in front of a certain semi-truck in 2011 comes to mind — even while doing objectively less to ensure that they’re understood.

— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of shocking

Adjective

Much has been written about the power of artificial intelligence to improve life in myriad ways, but also about its truly horrible effects—now and going forward—if it isn’t managed properly.

— Nadine Hack, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2026
But the horrible scenes that unfolded before him were incomparable.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of horrible

Adjective

But the core four aren’t the only transplants from Woodsboro, as Ghostface soon rears its ugly head, directly targeting them and whomever else is caught up in their orbit.

— Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 5 Sep. 2026
Especially if ugly seasons like last year pile up and the problem continues to snowball.

— James Mirtle, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of ugly

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heinies

heinous

heinousness

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“Heinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heinous. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of heinous

adjective

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