1
as in oppressive
difficult to endure
the murderous heat of the desert
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in difficult
requiring considerable physical or mental effort
those exams were murderous
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in lethal
likely to cause or capable of causing death
braved murderous machine-gun fire to capture the hill from the enemy
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4
as in murdering
eager for or marked by the shedding of blood, extreme violence, or killing
Viking warriors became legendary for the murderous fury they displayed in battle
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of murderous
My innards weren’t roiled by low expectations toward the summit — that was a given — but by the long list of Putin critics and political opponents who have died under mysterious circumstances over his murderous decadeslong reign.
—
Andy Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
His effort to schmaltz Putin with a display of royal pageantry obviously pleased this murderous dictator to no end.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Aug. 2025
Moorjani’s character—a rebel tied to a cannon, desperately trying to placate a cheerfully murderous British officer (Jonathan Oldfield)—emphasizes the complexity of accurately telling the story of a war.
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2025
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused by Israel’s aid blockade and bombing looks like revenge on a civilian population who are not responsible for Hamas’ murderous attack on October 7.
—Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for murderous
Andy Shaw, Chicago Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
His effort to schmaltz Putin with a display of royal pageantry obviously pleased this murderous dictator to no end.
—Letters To The Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 Aug. 2025
Moorjani’s character—a rebel tied to a cannon, desperately trying to placate a cheerfully murderous British officer (Jonathan Oldfield)—emphasizes the complexity of accurately telling the story of a war.
—Helen Shaw, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2025
The humanitarian crisis in Gaza caused by Israel’s aid blockade and bombing looks like revenge on a civilian population who are not responsible for Hamas’ murderous attack on October 7.
—Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 11 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for murderous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for murderous
Adjective
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That’s all according to host and showrunner Jeff Probst, who spoke to Entertainment Weekly about the oppressive real-feel temperatures in Fiji — temperatures that cannot be felt but, perhaps, seen in some exclusive season 49 photos staring at you from this very article.—
Dalton Ross,
EW.com,
27 Aug. 2025
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Rich asserted that the presumption of heterosexuality/attraction to men for all women itself must be named as an oppressive force and political institution.—
Quispe López,
Them.,
27 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Auburn, of the big, bad SEC, rolls into a difficult environment at Baylor – with the entire college football world watching the primetime game – and blows a tire against a wildly underrated Big 12 team.—
Matt Hayes,
The Tennessean,
30 Aug. 2025
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Keeping the festival free each year is an increasingly difficult task, but a rewarding effort, said Detroit Jazz Festival Foundation (DJFF) president and artistic director Chris Collins.—
Duante Beddingfield,
Freep.com,
30 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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But the two actors did get to work together on their TV series Chosen, an action-thriller series following a lawyer (Ventimiglia) who has been chosen by a mysterious organization known as The Watchers to participate in a lethal game.—
Mekishana Pierre,
EW.com,
1 Sep. 2025
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August marks deadliest month on record ever Israel's lethal attacks on Palestinian journalists in Gaza have only intensified in recent weeks.—
Aya Batrawy,
NPR,
1 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Brightech 12-Bulb Pro Solar Outdoor String Lights The string lights are intended for outdoor use thanks to their durable design that holds up to harsh weather conditions.—
Rachel Trujillo,
People.com,
29 Aug. 2025
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In addition to highlighting the harsh realities of being trans, Feinberg always stood steadfast in our need to find strength in each other in the face of it.—
Quispe López,
Them.,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The next job frontier Gen Z workers are finding it more and more challenging to fetch entry-level jobs as AI gets better at taking those jobs over.—
Phil Wahba,
Fortune,
2 Sep. 2025
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But the treatment is challenging and time-consuming.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Hurricane Ian, the deadliest storm to hit the state since 1935, made landfall in late September 2022.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
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She was previously charged with CHILD ABUSE, second-degree domestic assault, use of a deadly weapon to commit a felony.—
Patrick Oppmann,
CNN Money,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This conflict, called the Sino-Vietnamese War, was a brief but bloody conflict in which China launched an invasion of northern Vietnam in response to Vietnam’s occupation of Cambodia the year before.—
Christopher McFadden,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Sep. 2025
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The city suffered another bloody weekend on July 4 this year, when 55 people were shot, six of whom were killed.—
Anders Hagstrom,
FOXNews.com,
1 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Ahmed explained that the experience played a pivotal part in his accepting a role in Darius Marder's searing 2019 drama Sound of Metal, which earned the actor his first Oscar nomination.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
28 Aug. 2025
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This workhorse is made from durable cast iron that expertly distributes and retains heat for even cooking and better searing.—
Clara McMahon,
People.com,
28 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Murderous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/murderous. Accessed 5 Sep. 2025.
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