truculent

adjective

ˈtrə-kyə-lənt How to pronounce truculent (audio)
Definition of truculentnext
1
as in aggressive
feeling or displaying eagerness to fight die-hard fans who became truculent and violent after their team's loss

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language a theater critic who was notorious for his titanically truculent reviews

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others played the role of a disturbed and truculent villain

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 truculent The robot interpreted the command using an LLM and walked over to a corner of the office in a manner not unlike a truculent 9-year-old. — Will Knight, Wired News, 27 Jan. 2026 Even if the administration has no further military designs on the Western Hemisphere, a virtual sword of Damocles hangs over the head of truculent governments. — Richard Fontaine, The Atlantic, 4 Jan. 2026 France is in the midst of its worst political crisis in decades as a succession of minority governments seek to push deficit-reducing budgets through a truculent legislature split into three distinct ideological blocs. — Reuters, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2025 France has been mired in crisis as a series of minority governments struggle to pass deficit-reduction measures through a truculent parliament, split between three ideological blocs. — CNN Money, 12 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for truculent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for truculent
  1. aggressive
  2. abusive
  3. brutal
  4. militant
  5. insulting
  6. cruel
  7. hostile
  8. outrageous
Adjective
  • But Adebayo was aggressive and found a rhythm early on, totaling 24 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field and 8-of-9 shooting from the foul line, nine rebounds, three assists and three steals on Wednesday.
    — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 29 Oct. 2026
  • That is leading to unprecedented support for more aggressive federal action on health care.
    — Bob Herman, STAT, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of aggressive
Adjective
  • Advocates Against Family Violence in Canyon County is available at 208-459-4779 for anyone in need of help or shelter in an abusive relationship.
    — Idaho Statesman, Idaho Statesman, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Animal rights activists have argued in favor of banning the industry for more than two decades, calling the work dangerous and inherently abusive to the equines.
    — Evan Simko-Bednarski, New York Daily News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of abusive
Adjective
  • In Samo’s warped reality, omnipresent hornets gain an evil power, forcing him to confront his mother in what could turn into a brutal showdown.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 30 Oct. 2026
  • At this point, both teams are just playing for bowl eligibility, with brutal November schedules awaiting each team.
    — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of brutal
Adjective
  • The ministry described the confrontation as an assault on militant positions.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026
  • More than 1,550 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed by the Israeli military since the ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas began in October 2025, according to the territory's health ministry.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of militant
Adjective
  • But to propose trading him for anything short of a fourth-round pick is insulting.
    — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Afterward, Lisa brags about her pickpocketing skills and says theft is easier and less insulting to the mark.
    — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of insulting
Adjective
  • Participants fell into their roles a little too well and, after a prisoner rebellion, increasingly cruel forms of punishment from the guards and a number of students suffering mental breakdowns, the experiment was ended on the sixth day.
    — Marlow Stern, Variety, 25 Oct. 2026
  • But these townswomen — whether the undersexed Bakerwoman (Ella Bruccoleri ) or the prim, cruel busybody the Tailor’s Wife (a deliciously scheming Elizabeth Debicki) — are deeply unhappy with their own lot in life.
    — Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • Defeat effectiveness exceeded approximately 75 to 80 percent, while operator observations indicated the system was even more effective at preventing hostile UAS from successfully completing their missions.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Yet another challenge came from the local community, which has historically been hostile to new development.
    — Deborah Netburn, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of hostile
Adjective
  • And the scant records around the outrageous boondoggle that poured more than $1 billion into a hellhole immigrant-detention camp in the Everglades point to him as the key engineer.
    — Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, The Orlando Sentinel, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Kate currently lives in the wilds of Connecticut with her husband, two sons, and a truly outrageous number of pets.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of outrageous

Browse Nearby Words

truculency
truculent
trudge
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Truculent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/truculent. Accessed 1 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of Pyrrhic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

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

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Pwn, Skibidi, Girlboss and Other Words Added to the 2026 Scrabble Dictionary

The Words of the Week - Oct. 30

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

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
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All