as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
the troubled youth is being treated by a psychotherapist for his sadistic urges to hurt animals
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 sadistic
The group protested against the controversial Robert Mapplethorpe photography exhibit in Cincinnati, which included some nude photos of children and gay sadistic and masochistic culture.
—
Victoria Moorwood, Cincinnati Enquirer, 14 Dec. 2025
Every other tale can be sadistic or not, and in a more Jungian way.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 12 Dec. 2025
Everett Blunck, also tremendous in this year’s Griffin in Summer, stars as Ben, a 12-year-old boy who encounters sadistic hazing at an all-boys water-polo camp.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2025
Mabry was able to get police involved again when the sadistic threats from Robert Bevers continued.
—J.d. Miles, CBS News, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
Victoria Moorwood, Cincinnati Enquirer, 14 Dec. 2025
Every other tale can be sadistic or not, and in a more Jungian way.
—Anne Thompson, IndieWire, 12 Dec. 2025
Everett Blunck, also tremendous in this year’s Griffin in Summer, stars as Ben, a 12-year-old boy who encounters sadistic hazing at an all-boys water-polo camp.
—Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 10 Dec. 2025
Mabry was able to get police involved again when the sadistic threats from Robert Bevers continued.
—J.d. Miles, CBS News, 20 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sadistic
Adjective
-
Recently, the vast majority have been coming from Sudan, embroiled in a brutal civil war which has displaced millions.—
Mick Krever,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Musically, Lee took on the air of a woman revealing intimate truths about herself one year at a time, shedding layers as a way of rewarding patience with honesty, no matter how brutal.—
Nina Corcoran,
Pitchfork,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
That is unacceptably cruel, corrupt, and undemocratic.—
Brie Stimson,
FOXNews.com,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Instead, she was stripped of her bronze medal after a late score inquiry—a ruling that still feels cruel for an athlete who had delivered the performance of her life.—
Essence,
Essence,
6 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Officials charged Damon Leanord of Pleasanton, Kansas, with interference with law enforcement, having a vicious dog at large and criminal desecration of a body in Linn County and abandonment of a corpse charges in Bates County, Missouri, after finding the child’s body at the bottom of a creek bed.—
Sofi Zeman
January 6,
Kansas City Star,
6 Jan. 2026
-
He was shocked in 2013 when he was struck by vicious bouts of vomiting.—
Robert McCoppin,
Chicago Tribune,
5 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
The Edmund Fitzgerald was caught in a savage storm with hurricane-force winds around 100-mile-an-hour and waves up to 60 feet, crashing down on the freighter every four to eight seconds, says Bacon.—
NPR,
NPR,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Here, spiritual infractions are met with savage physical punishment and some of the more grotesque images in recent horror memory (which, as the genre has become ever more popular and emboldened, is seriously saying something).—
Dennis Perkins,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The ruthless conglomerate's logo, base, ships, and equipment are featured throughout the film, in addition to the synths themselves.—
Lauren Huff,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Earlier stories in that newspaper described López Torres as a ruthless trafficker who has killed dozens and was earlier aligned with Colombia’s right-wing paramilitary forces, known as the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia, or the Spanish acronym AUC.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sadistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sadistic. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share