REVENGEFUL Synonyms: 68 Similar and Opposite Words

revengeful

adjective

ri-ˈvenj-fəl

Definition of revengeful

as in vengeful

likely to seek revenge the minister urged his congregation to be less revengeful and more forgiving in spirit

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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 revengeful DeMar DeRozan had 32, Russell Westbrook had a revengeful 22 and Malik Monk had 26 off the bench. — Zach Harper, New York Times, 13 Jan. 2026 Brian Heil played Don Jose with angst and ultimately, revengeful rage as Carmen’s spurned lover. — Marcia Luttrell, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Dec. 2025 This latest installment finds the Sully family grieving one of their own when a new threat emerges in the form of the Fire tribe, an antagonistic group of Na’vi volcano-dwellers led by the revengeful Varang (Oona Chaplin in her franchise debut). — Jack Dunn, Variety, 2 Dec. 2025 Eventually, this revengeful streak will result in loneliness and isolation. — Nicole Froio, refinery29.com, 29 Oct. 2024 Artemis was revengeful toward anyone who trespassed in wild nature, and trespassing could mean neglect, like not paying your dues. — Robert Sullivan, Vogue, 20 June 2023 The club came back with wins over Heights Norhill and a revengeful victory over Post Oak on Sunday, but leaving the bases loaded three times is going to all but ruin any team’s hopes for a big win. — Robert Avery, Houston Chronicle, 9 July 2019

Recent Examples of Synonyms for revengeful

Adjective

Here was a candidate who got shot—as Roosevelt was, in 1912, by a man who’d been instructed to do so in a dream by the vengeful ghost of William McKinley—and kept on campaigning.

— Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2026
Then the Legislature must act, looking for ways to keep state employees from abusing their power in pursuit of a political or vengeful agenda.

— Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Aug. 2026

Definition of vengeful

Adjective

Instead, the former football receiver claimed that the suspension was the result of vindictive parents with complaints about their kids’ playing time.

— Molly Hensley-Clancy, ProPublica, 20 Aug. 2026
The filing was one of several Tuesday in response to a filing by Comey's lawyers seeking to dismiss the indictment against him on the grounds of vindictive and selective prosecution.

— Dan Mangan, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of vindictive

Adjective

Success can feel like a cruel tease, fleetingly unattainable and yet when finally achieved, too dangerous to enjoy too long.

— Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Aug. 2026
If Russia behaved badly, that was the fault of its primitive and cruel Asian side, a notion that conveniently created the fiction that Western countries are not capable of similar cruelty.

— Foreign Affairs, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of cruel

Adjective

Use strong security software Good security software can help protect you from malicious links, phishing attempts and other online threats that may try to steal your information.

— Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Many phones silently join familiar-looking networks without user confirmation, a behavior that attackers exploit through malicious wireless access points that mimic trusted hotspots.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of malicious

Adjective

But Roy’s story of Annie (Arjun Raina), a New Delhi architecture student caught in a vicious cycle of failing and repeating his studies, gradually reveals itself as a sharp and poignant portrayal of youth, deftly poised between hope and cynicism.

— Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 18 Aug. 2026
Lawsuits, bureaucratic battles, boisterously divisive council arguments and vicious social media debates have been part of Bloomfield life for years, and intensified during Danielle Wong’s contentious time as mayor.

— Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of vicious

Adjective

The league's anti-hate committee was formed last year to deal with hateful and abusive online comments directed at players and the league.

— S.E. Jenkins, CBS News, 19 Aug. 2026
But arguably the script by Jones and director Brunner might have been a skoosh more impactful if the small-minded townsfolk, clearly coded as bigoted MAGA types, weren’t quite so hateful with only a few exceptions.

— Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of hateful

Adjective

Alice and Gemma really don’t seem to get along, and neither seems inclined to back down from their hostile postures.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 19 Aug. 2026
The true target of the strike was Turkey, which has grown increasingly hostile toward Israel since the war in Gaza, and over its differing approach to Syria.

— Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of hostile

Adjective

Again and again, Bass went after Raman in the pettiest, most personal ways.

— Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
But to build a web of accusations based on false premises and the manipulation of reality in order to attack the Biennale and a film invited to compete is a petty and unacceptable act.

— John Bleasdale, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of petty

Browse Nearby Words

revenged

revengeful

revenger

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“Revengeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/revengeful. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of revengeful

adjective

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