MEAN-SPIRITEDNESS Synonyms: 78 Similar and Opposite Words

mean-spiritedness

noun

as in animosity

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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 mean-spiritedness Every day this White House offers up a fresh batch of lawlessness and recklessness and mean-spiritedness and just plain craziness. — Halle Troadec, ABC News, 2 Nov. 2025 There’s a weird mean-spiritedness amongst young male losers that is harming them. — Jesse David Fox, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025 There was a mean-spiritedness that the white COs up in the mountains had for us that the Black and brown ones who guarded us in Sing Sing did not. — John J. Lennon september 24, Literary Hub, 24 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mean-spiritedness

Noun

Thorne and Zendaya exchanged notes and realized the animosity between them wasn’t coming from either one.

— Bethy Squires, Vulture, 5 Aug. 2026
Instead, sources familiar with the situation pointed to Trump’s history of dropping past animosity with Republicans who appease him as one reason Pirro still has a shot of lasting beyond this week’s tenuous moment.

— Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of animosity

Noun

The Very Online meanness, and attendant allegations of sexism and élitism, carries echoes of the rift between the Clintonites and the Bernie Bros; El-Sayed has talked openly of using a victory to shape the 2028 Presidential field.

— Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Sometimes the irony turns bitter and, with a typically Eastern European sensibility, highlights the paradoxes of institutions, as well as the madness and meanness born from the pursuit and preservation of power.

— Zac Ntim, Deadline, 8 June 2026

Definition of meanness

Noun

But the trash-talking and, especially, antagonism over race and ethnicity is gratuitous and needlessly divisive.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Aug. 2026
The match took place against a background of antagonism between the nations, heightened by Argentina's recent semifinal win over England at the World Cup.

— ABC News, ABC News, 18 July 2026

Definition of antagonism

Noun

On the obverse of this hostility is a genuine love of life, at least in some of its forms.

— Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
Given the extent of the disruption to oil exports from the Middle East since the start of hostilities between Washington and Tehran, most of the hikes announced by OPEC+ since March have had a negligible impact on the physical crude market.

— Gaurav Sharma, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of hostility

Noun

Colt Gray, now 16, pleaded guilty to 55 felony counts, including four counts of malice murder, on Friday.

— Eric Levenson, CNN Money, 30 July 2026
The suspect, who has not been identified due to his age, faces two counts of malice murder, possession of a pistol by a minor, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime.

— Dan Raby, CBS News, 29 July 2026

Definition of malice

Noun

The extensive prep helped Roth maintain a fun atmosphere on set in spite of the time pressures — something that was key to getting the best out of his cast of child actors.

— Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 3 Aug. 2026
In spite of their original values of humanitarianism and neutrality, these organizations have been morally debased from within, using the language of human rights and international justice yet deploying it on behalf of autocracies and against the liberal democracies that created them.

— Simon Sebag Montefiore, The Atlantic, 28 June 2026

Definition of spite

Noun

Those short-term tweaks, rising costs and council rancor led to dual downgrades from ratings agencies earlier this year.

— A.D. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 25 June 2026
Yet as the memory of the Civil War faded, the meaning of the symbols changed; the names Sumner and Brooks became emblems of partisan rancor—a cautionary tale about the breakdown of civil discourse.

— Rob Wolfe, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026

Definition of rancor

Noun

The enmity between their legacies and their fanbase once felt too thick to ever dissolve.

— Marcus Thompson II, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
White would not be happy about these songs being used to speculate about what goes on behind closed doors — that seems evident enough from the several songs on the album that express enmity toward snoops and know-it-alls.

— Chris Willman, Variety, 11 July 2026

Definition of enmity

Browse Nearby Words

mean-spirited

mean-spiritedness

meant

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Mean-spiritedness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mean-spiritedness. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of mean-spiritedness

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

anecdote

Popular in Grammar & Usage

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?

Popular

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Games & Quizzes