as in horrific
very bad or evil; deserving of hate or contempt
These murders were especially heinous. the heinous brutality of the attack
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in badness
the state or quality of being utterly evil
the heinousness of the Holocaust was only fully realized after the war
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heinous
Andy Swift, TVLine, 18 May 2025
The series follows an aspiring author, cursed with writer’s block and ridden with debt, who is offered a huge amount of money to commit a heinous crime.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 16 May 2025
Terrorists should know there’s no place to hide from their heinous crimes against the innocent.
—Shane Croucher
hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 May 2025
Justice is not always served when those who commit heinous crimes are locked up for life.
—Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Adjective
Joe getting exposed for his many heinous crimes and spending the rest of his days behind bars.
—Andy Swift, TVLine, 18 May 2025
The series follows an aspiring author, cursed with writer’s block and ridden with debt, who is offered a huge amount of money to commit a heinous crime.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 16 May 2025
Terrorists should know there’s no place to hide from their heinous crimes against the innocent.
—Shane Croucher
hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 May 2025
Justice is not always served when those who commit heinous crimes are locked up for life.
—Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 6 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heinous
Adjective
-
The war has carried a horrific toll for Gazans, with many dead amid the fighting and whole neighborhoods razed to the ground.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 May 2025
-
Instead of just ending on that horrific moment, the show then cuts to Abby several days earlier.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
Adjective
-
Larvae of the parasitic fly chew through flesh, transforming small nicks into big, gruesome wounds.—
Sarah Zhang,
The Atlantic,
27 May 2025
-
The gruesome recovery comes in the wake of a gruesome February incident, when a body was found inside a suitcase floating in the East River.—
Nicholas Williams,
New York Daily News,
27 May 2025
Adjective
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But the defense is hoping to cast her recollections merely as sickening details in a deranged love story between two consenting and jealous adults.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
17 May 2025
-
For years, raw sewage from Mexico has poured across the border into Southern California, fouling beaches, sickening residents and sparking diplomatic as well as environmental concerns.—
Joe Edwards,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 May 2025
Noun
-
Immediately, people all over the world are uploading videos of their enemies committing atrocities, inflaming centuries-old animosities.—
Glenn Whipp,
Los Angeles Times,
2 June 2025
-
After thousands of terrorists invaded Israel and committed mass atrocities, Hamas continued to commandeer aid, creating and taking advantage of a black market.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
1 June 2025
Adjective
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The shocking 2023 implosion of the OceanGate Titan submersible, which instantly killed all five passengers, is the subject of a damning new documentary from Netflix.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
22 May 2025
-
Strategic Planning Gaps: Only 12% of CEOs have a formal AI deployment roadmap extending beyond one year—a shocking statistic given that most expect to be judged on AI results within a two-year timeframe.—
Caroline Castrillon,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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But unfortunately, that also means Big Mouth, the cartoon about all the disgusting, messy parts of growing up from Nick Kroll, must also conclude as well.—
Lucy Ford,
Time,
19 May 2025
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Donning silly British accents, Johansson joins Gardner, Fineman, and Sherman for a disgusting and messy meal.—
Andy Hoglund Updated,
EW.com,
18 May 2025
Adjective
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Djokovic knew he’d be seeded to play one of Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev or Taylor Fritz in the quarters, and in the end landed Zverev, which isn’t a terrible outcome, but would leave him with a possible Sinner-Alcaraz double bill in the semifinals and final to lift the trophy.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
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One night the fish was very overcooked and covered with a terrible sauce.—
Sheah Rarback,
Miami Herald,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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There’s no doubt that Lewis, abandoned as a baby by his parents, has done some horrible stuff.—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
26 May 2025
-
Given the horrible economic incentives that government regulation has created, the surprise is not that some patients experience mistreatment.—
John C. Goodman,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Heinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heinous. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.
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