as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
a theater critic with a take-no-prisoners approach to reviewing Broadway's latest offerings
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Recent Examples of take-no-prisoners
His take-no-prisoners approach played well.
—
Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 12 May 2026
Chicago is known for its hard-nosed politics and take-no-prisoners attitude.
—Glenn Davis, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Her take-no-prisoners portrayal of Lois quickly became a defining career highlight.
—Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2026
But some specialists in legal ethics expressed doubts at the time that the additional pledge would affect courtroom behavior — the late Stanford Law professor Deborah Rhode said some lawyers simply conclude that a take-no-prisoners attitude would help their client.
—Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Mar. 2026
Continuing in his take-no-prisoners approach, Lane moved on from Chalamet to relate an anecdote, first told by his friend Jesse Tyler Ferguson on a podcast, in which Lane met Ferguson’s young son, who was duly dazzled by The Lion King star.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 12 Mar. 2026
Ricky Gervais has hosted the Golden Globes five times, making Hollywood sweat with his take-no-prisoners approach to jokes mocking showbiz.
—William Earl, Variety, 30 Dec. 2025
Hence the tendency to preen and posture and adopt a take-no-prisoners attitude toward even the mildest criticism or opposition, not to mention the mindless attacks on staunchly pro-American countries such as Canada or Denmark.
—Stephen M. Walt, Washington Post, 4 Nov. 2025
Directed by genre-hopping Ben Wheatley and written by John Wick creator Derek Kolstad from a story hatched by Kolstad and Odenkirk, the subversive Western is a take-no-prisoners gore fest that peppers all the visceral carnage with an equal sprinkling of dry wit.
—Michael Rechtshaffen, HollywoodReporter, 15 Sep. 2025
Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 12 May 2026
Chicago is known for its hard-nosed politics and take-no-prisoners attitude.
—Glenn Davis, Chicago Tribune, 3 May 2026
Her take-no-prisoners portrayal of Lois quickly became a defining career highlight.
—Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2026
But some specialists in legal ethics expressed doubts at the time that the additional pledge would affect courtroom behavior — the late Stanford Law professor Deborah Rhode said some lawyers simply conclude that a take-no-prisoners attitude would help their client.
—Bob Egelko, San Francisco Chronicle, 16 Mar. 2026
Continuing in his take-no-prisoners approach, Lane moved on from Chalamet to relate an anecdote, first told by his friend Jesse Tyler Ferguson on a podcast, in which Lane met Ferguson’s young son, who was duly dazzled by The Lion King star.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 12 Mar. 2026
Ricky Gervais has hosted the Golden Globes five times, making Hollywood sweat with his take-no-prisoners approach to jokes mocking showbiz.
—William Earl, Variety, 30 Dec. 2025
Hence the tendency to preen and posture and adopt a take-no-prisoners attitude toward even the mildest criticism or opposition, not to mention the mindless attacks on staunchly pro-American countries such as Canada or Denmark.
—Stephen M. Walt, Washington Post, 4 Nov. 2025
Directed by genre-hopping Ben Wheatley and written by John Wick creator Derek Kolstad from a story hatched by Kolstad and Odenkirk, the subversive Western is a take-no-prisoners gore fest that peppers all the visceral carnage with an equal sprinkling of dry wit.
—Michael Rechtshaffen, HollywoodReporter, 15 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for take-no-prisoners
Adjective
-
When a ruthless despot steals a billion-dollar fortune, the team is sent to steal it back on what would be for anyone else a suicide mission.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
14 May 2026
-
Assayas offers anecdotes, a feuilleton of tyranny in which the foibles of the mighty and the ruthless reveal the sentimental side of cruelty, the amusement value of ugly deeds, and the polite side of monstrous ideas.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
13 May 2026
Adjective
-
Ron White, Joe DeRosa, and Tony’s number one favorite comic, Tony Hinchcliffe (played by Adam Ray), showed the crowd exactly what effortless and absolutely merciless veteran comedy looks like.—
Malina Saval,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
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Development in the Dotte 🪠 Fish or human feces often wash up in KCK homes during those merciless spring rains.—
Sofi Zeman,
Kansas City Star,
30 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Take-no-prisoners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/take-no-prisoners. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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