as in murderous
eager for or marked by the shedding of blood, extreme violence, or killing
a movie so sanguinary that I covered my eyes during at least half of it
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sanguinary
Mass shootings scarcely register anymore, unless the death toll reaches a certain sanguinary level.
—
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2024
Michael Modafferi Lawmakers and order Yonkers: How many more innocents will be murdered, mugged and mauled by sanguinary, recidivist thugs and mentally ill individuals, none of whom belong unfettered on the streets of New York City and state, before the left-wing Democrats restore law and order?
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2024
An appeal to force was an admission of failure, and the pride of the new nation was the sense of overcoming the sanguinary reflexes of the old world.
—TIME, 31 Jan. 2024
That battle would send Bonaparte on a dizzying journey up — and down and up and down — the greasy pole of French politics and military promotions, and it’s staged by Scott with sanguinary detail: Blood will spurt, spray and splatter throughout the battles that made him and undid him.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sanguinary
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 14 July 2024
Michael Modafferi Lawmakers and order Yonkers: How many more innocents will be murdered, mugged and mauled by sanguinary, recidivist thugs and mentally ill individuals, none of whom belong unfettered on the streets of New York City and state, before the left-wing Democrats restore law and order?
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 27 Mar. 2024
An appeal to force was an admission of failure, and the pride of the new nation was the sense of overcoming the sanguinary reflexes of the old world.
—TIME, 31 Jan. 2024
That battle would send Bonaparte on a dizzying journey up — and down and up and down — the greasy pole of French politics and military promotions, and it’s staged by Scott with sanguinary detail: Blood will spurt, spray and splatter throughout the battles that made him and undid him.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 21 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sanguinary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sanguinary
Adjective
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Those settlers managed to make an underground river with murderous maggots on unstable terrain into a tourist attraction in record time.—
Ann Patchett,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
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The stories of the state's historic lodges are full of resilience, overcoming natural and economic disasters, and in one case, a brush with a murderous gang of bank robbers.—
Michael Salerno,
AZCentral.com,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Africa’s transformation proved far bloodier than many had hoped, yet Mamdani still insists that the continent’s independence leaders have something to teach the world.—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
6 Oct. 2025
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The film had its world premiere in September at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of its Midnight Madness section, which is largely home to bloody horror and wildly NSFW fare.—
William Earl,
Variety,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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McBride sets the political context for Swift’s savage indignation by noting that 1727–1729 saw three successive harvest failures in Ireland.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
30 Sep. 2025
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The singer went viral at Monday night’s show for her seemingly savage reaction to Tori Kelly and Muni Long’s tribute performance.—
DeMicia Inman,
VIBE.com,
26 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The scene, which was not in Stephenie Meyer's 2008 book that the movie was adapted from, raised eyebrows for its brutal killings of vampires Carlisle Cullen (Peter Facinelli) and Jasper Hale (Jackson Rathbone), as well as werewolves Seth (Booboo Stewart) and Leah Clearwater (Julia Jones).—
Jen Juneau,
PEOPLE,
2 Oct. 2025
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In a new era of Steven Knight’s Peaky Blinders, the race to own Birmingham’s massive reconstruction project becomes a brutal contest of mythical dimensions.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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While Memphis has seen high numbers of violent crimes such as homicides and carjackings in recent years, Democratic and Republican officials have noted decreases this year in some crime categories.—
Devon M. Sayers,
CNN Money,
1 Oct. 2025
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Even so, to take on one of the most famous women in history — and through a lens so bloody and violent — is a mighty tall order.—
Shirley Halperin,
HollywoodReporter,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sanguinary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sanguinary. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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