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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Recent Examples of heinous
There’s long been interest in those accused of heinous crimes — serial killers Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer famously received numerous letters from fans while incarcerated.
—
Lorena O'Neil, Rolling Stone, 24 Nov. 2025
Members of the media should really stop and ask themselves why these people ran directly to the press and activists to make such heinous allegations, rather than report it to any law enforcement authorities.
—Anna Alejo, CBS News, 22 Nov. 2025
Bipartisan critics also blasted Saudi Arabia for the 2018 assassination of columnist Jamal Khashoggi, and tied that heinous event directly to MBS.
—Dana L. Stroul, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
Hamas’s heinous attack came at a moment when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was politically vulnerable and facing serious corruption charges.
—Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Lorena O'Neil, Rolling Stone, 24 Nov. 2025
Members of the media should really stop and ask themselves why these people ran directly to the press and activists to make such heinous allegations, rather than report it to any law enforcement authorities.
—Anna Alejo, CBS News, 22 Nov. 2025
Bipartisan critics also blasted Saudi Arabia for the 2018 assassination of columnist Jamal Khashoggi, and tied that heinous event directly to MBS.
—Dana L. Stroul, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Nov. 2025
Hamas’s heinous attack came at a moment when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was politically vulnerable and facing serious corruption charges.
—Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 14 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heinous
Adjective
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Wednesday afternoon, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called the shooting horrific.—
Ali Bauman,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
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From a horrific account of an asteroid hitting Earth to an evil AI computer capable of designing deadly activities, readers will face the dark and mysterious corners of the human experience.—
Jessica Tzikas,
Sun Sentinel,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Von had been Trump-friendly before the gruesome and heartbreaking videos of the ICE raids targeting working immigrants started going viral on social media.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
7 Nov. 2025
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Daniels suffered his gruesome non-throwing-arm injury during the fourth quarter of Week 9's blowout loss to the Seahawks.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Up north, hundreds of sea lions have been found on beaches in recent months suffering from a bacterial condition that is sickening and killing younger sea lions by attacking their kidneys, said John Warner, CEO of the Marine Mammal Care Center Los Angeles in San Pedro.—
Erika I. Ritchie,
Oc Register,
29 Oct. 2025
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Winter is coming, and no amount of Narcan can solve this sickening public health crisis.—
Joe Dwinell,
Boston Herald,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The shocking decision sends ripples through the Washington program and the college football transfer portal.—
The Athletic College Football Staff,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
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There are some great twists and turns leading to a shocking but very satisfying ending.—
Will Harris,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
By modern standards, kind of disgusting.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
7 Nov. 2025
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But stepping into that closet was really disgusting.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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The groundbreaking research penetrated the last moments of the young nobleman, who suffered a terrible 26 blows.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Nov. 2025
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History is full of cases where great bands make terrible records, yet history stands speechless at what the Clash accomplished here.—
Rob Sheffield,
Rolling Stone,
9 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Are there horrible smells wafting around?—
Clio Chang,
Curbed,
7 Jan. 2026
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Jimmy Kimmel was horrible, and some of these people.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Not because the moms themselves are toxic people, but because the dynamic shifts into an ugly place with mean-girl behavior.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
7 Jan. 2026
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Sure, coach Mike Tomlin's teams tend to win ugly games, but not in the playoffs — at least not lately.—
Austin Mock,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heinous. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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