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
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Recent Examples of sadistic
The filmmakers and inmates carried out this investigation in secret, through anonymous phone calls and surreptitious recordings, ultimately revealing systemic rot inside a sadistic prison system.
—
Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026
The most sadistic of his colleagues formed a group, known as the Goon Squad, which beat inmates.
—James Verini, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
Convinced that her sadistic ceremonies will transform him into a god, Clara draws Brighton into a hallucinatory descent into faith, flesh, and the sublime.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 16 Feb. 2026
That was Sokolowski’s introduction to a network of sadistic online extremists.
—Curt Devine, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
Joe Reid, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026
The most sadistic of his colleagues formed a group, known as the Goon Squad, which beat inmates.
—James Verini, New Yorker, 2 Mar. 2026
Convinced that her sadistic ceremonies will transform him into a god, Clara draws Brighton into a hallucinatory descent into faith, flesh, and the sublime.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 16 Feb. 2026
That was Sokolowski’s introduction to a network of sadistic online extremists.
—Curt Devine, CNN Money, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sadistic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sadistic
Adjective
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Seventy percent of tomatoes consumed in the United States come from Mexico, where the weather was also brutal, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF).—
Vanessa Yurkevich,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2026
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For Asmae El Moudir in The Mother of All Lies, that meant using miniatures to coax out details of her family’s experiences during Morocco’s brutal Years of Lead.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Dahl’s books are fanciful and imaginative, but also dark, cynical, and mean (and, unfortunately, often reflected his real-life ugliness), spinning stories in which gruesome and unpleasant fates befell rotten kids, and adults were frequently selfish, cruel, and not to be trusted.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
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Violating that trust is both cruel and unlawful.—
DeJanay Booth-Singleton,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Inexplicable, loud, kinetic, vicious.—
Caroline Mimbs Nyce,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
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That is, until the union starts not-so-quietly exploding during a vicious screaming match at their home following a fundraising event.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
17 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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This time playing an underling rather than a boss, Hoskins gave one of the best performances of his career in what remains a high point for Jordan as well, a lyrical and poignant yet savage film noir filled with regret, rage, and unrequited love.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
20 Apr. 2026
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The famed African American journalist investigated lynchings across the South and wrote about the savage incidents that the white press had already explained away.—
Case Thorp,
The Orlando Sentinel,
5 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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More ruthless than ever, Tony Baddingham (Tennant) is determined to dismantle his rivals piece-by-piece, weaponising scandal and manipulating those closest to him to maintain his grip on power.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
16 Apr. 2026
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Their little brother Dante is an irresponsible party boy, tangled up with a ruthless local gang.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sadistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sadistic. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
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