1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

stonyhearted

adjective

ˈstō-nē-ˌhär-təd How to pronounce stonyhearted (audio)
Definition of stonyheartednext
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings a less stonyhearted person would not have been so indifferent to the dying man's pleas for forgiveness

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for stonyhearted
  1. ruthless
  2. stony
  3. merciless
  4. hard
Adjective
  • Joe has always been ruthless, but never quite as tunnel-visioned in her motivations.
    — Andy Andersen, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2026
  • Therefore, if Question 3 passes in this fall’s elections, Annapolis Democrats will forever be able to engage in ruthless gerrymandering to ensure that Maryland never elects another Republican or independent to Congress.
    — Chris West, Baltimore Sun, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of ruthless
Adjective
  • Oscar Wilde, for example, reposes beneath a hulking deity whose iconoclastic castration, back in 1961, did little to restrain pilgrims seeking to smear red lips across his stony physique.
    — Emily Cox, ARTnews.com, 22 May 2026
  • Instead of looking like a sleek urban loft, the room can quickly start to feel cold, stony, and impersonal.
    — Natasha Bazika, Martha Stewart, 9 May 2026
Definition of stony
Adjective
  • Cora, the granddaughter of a woman kidnapped from West Africa and sold into slavery, flees her captor’s plantation, plunging her into the book’s alternate steampunk reality where she is pursued by the merciless slave catcher Ridgeway.
    — David Faris, TheWeek, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But the movie very much belongs to Trinca and Bruni Tedeschi, just as Anna belongs to the merciless stranger.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of merciless
Adjective
  • Their furrows reminded me of Rembrandt’s paintings of old men, brows carved deep by hard use and long years.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Since then, his settings have become harder to locate in the contemporary world.
    — Matthew McLean, Artforum, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of hard
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.

Browse Nearby Words

stony
stonyhearted
stood
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stonyhearted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stonyhearted. Accessed 25 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of tactile

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 25
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All