ill-naturedly

adverb

as in ungraciously

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill-naturedly
  1. insensitively
  2. unkindly
  3. cruelly
  4. ill
  5. ruthlessly
  6. mercilessly
  7. diabolically
  8. pitilessly
Adverb
  • Residents were treated carelessly, disrespectfully, insensitively.
    — Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 2 Apr. 2026
  • In this volatile environment, comments that appear to minimize or frame the shooting insensitively—like Matt Gutman's—can quickly become career-ending.
    — Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
Definition of insensitively
Adverb
  • Yet, since the post went up, some people have unkindly critiqued her cheeks, nose, chin and complexion, while others wonder what the fuss is all about.
    — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
  • Tabloids and magazines regularly reported on the state of the relationship, often unkindly.
    — Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 13 Feb. 2026
Definition of unkindly
Adverb
  • Rubio did not finish the stage — his Tour cruelly over, just two days before Paris.
    — Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 24 July 2026
  • The practice was criticized by advocates and others as cruelly targeting rule followers as low-hanging fruit to meet quotas.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 20 July 2026
Definition of cruelly
Adverb
  • In recent years, defense officials have increasingly studied how to harden bases against drone attacks, recognizing that infrastructure built for earlier conflicts is often ill-suited to withstand modern threats.
    — Steven Beynon, ABC News, 21 July 2026
  • But as yesterday’s race showed, the current F1 machinery is utterly ill-suited to this dramatic venue.
    — Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 20 July 2026
Definition of ill
Adverb
  • This summer will not repeat the last, where 14 new players arrived at a cost of £170million ($228m) to ruthlessly overhaul a promotion-winning squad.
    — Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 22 July 2026
  • But when the swirl of events beyond their control caught them into something immeasurably larger than a single game of soccer, not even the strength of their new mentality was enough to prevent them from being ruthlessly swept away.
    — Mark Sappenfield, Christian Science Monitor, 7 July 2026
Definition of ruthlessly
Adverb
  • Despite her clear influence, Rico was mercilessly heckled by Carti fans during her performance at the Portland tour stop.
    — Mehan Jayasuriya, Pitchfork, 24 July 2026
  • Long pants in summer may not be at the top of your shopping list, but this set is so handy (and polished) for travel days or times in the office when the AC is mercilessly blasting.
    — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 23 July 2026
Definition of mercilessly
Adverb
  • Dumpings can happen by elimination, by public vote—every week or so, viewers can choose their favorite islanders or pick who a new bombshell should pair up with—or, more diabolically, by the other islanders’ selection.
    — Lillian Fishman, New Yorker, 27 June 2026
  • That’s par for the course in a facility where all of the nurses are angels (Fisayo Akinade’s diabolically endearing Nurse Angel in particular), and nobody else seems to be sick.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 11 Dec. 2025
Definition of diabolically
Adverb
  • The first hour, set at a resort that’s like a singles cruise through the Twilight Zone (or Bachelor in Paradise beamed in from a brutal alternate universe), contains some of the most pitilessly funny scenes of the filmmaker’s career.
    — A.A. Dowd, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Definition of pitilessly
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ill-natured
ill-naturedly
illness
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Cite this Entry

“Ill-naturedly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill-naturedly. Accessed 29 Jul. 2026.

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