as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language
the type of provocative magazine article that is guaranteed to engender vituperative threats of subscription cancellations
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of vituperative
From his pulpit, Wicks rains down selectively vituperative fire and brimstone, with an eye toward provoking walkouts from unsuspecting visitors—say, a gay couple or a single mom.
—
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 11 Dec. 2025
In the years intervening, the poem has remained a lodestar, a contravening presence when, in present day America’s vituperative political landscape, the humanities disciplines and higher education itself has been forced to invoke and defend its own authority.
—Elaine L. Wang
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Even the company’s most vituperative detractors acknowledge its engineering genius and applaud its success in driving down launch expenses (unlike many defense contractors, SpaceX largely eats the cost of its failures).
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025
Transcripts of the depositions conducted by utility lawyers were made public Friday in Superior Court and hundreds of pages of questions and answers suggest questions about who contributed what to the vituperative oped may never be answered to everyone’s satisfaction.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for vituperative
Justin Chang, New Yorker, 11 Dec. 2025
In the years intervening, the poem has remained a lodestar, a contravening presence when, in present day America’s vituperative political landscape, the humanities disciplines and higher education itself has been forced to invoke and defend its own authority.
—Elaine L. Wang
september 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Even the company’s most vituperative detractors acknowledge its engineering genius and applaud its success in driving down launch expenses (unlike many defense contractors, SpaceX largely eats the cost of its failures).
—Franklin Foer, The Atlantic, 28 July 2025
Transcripts of the depositions conducted by utility lawyers were made public Friday in Superior Court and hundreds of pages of questions and answers suggest questions about who contributed what to the vituperative oped may never be answered to everyone’s satisfaction.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for vituperative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vituperative
Adjective
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On The Rookie, Jenna Dewan shared screentime with her real-life fiancé, Steve Kazee, who played her frightening, abusive husband, Jason Wyler.—
Tanya Melendez,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Jan. 2026
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The story follows a young woman, a lifelong swimmer and Olympic hopeful, who accepts a college swimming scholarship in Texas in order to escape an abusive father and an alcoholic, suicidal mother.—
Karla Rodriguez,
Footwear News,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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De Laurentiis took all the chaos in stride and was the expert judge for the cooking portion of the outrageous lineup of competitions.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
9 Jan. 2026
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The lawsuit also alleges WSU was liable for claims of outrageous conduct and other forms of negligence.—
Kevin Fixler,
Idaho Statesman,
8 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Many researchers cite those exact words as insulting or wrong when asked about their own terminations.—
STAT Staff,
STAT,
29 Dec. 2025
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With two toddlers and a 10-hour workday for her husband, the advice was more insulting than helpful.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
7 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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Whether ecstatic or vitriolic, the attention the book garnered was unprecedented.—
Via Scribner,
Literary Hub,
7 Oct. 2025
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One of the most viral and vitriolic critiques came from Crissle West, co-host of the popular pop-culture podcast The Read.—
Meagan Jordan,
Rolling Stone,
3 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Banners containing commercial, political or obscene material, or that block guest views.—
Ed Masley,
AZCentral.com,
4 Nov. 2025
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Just another week in the world of Ball, who was fined $35,000 by the NBA on Monday for making an obscene gesture in the fourth quarter of the Hornets’ 144-117 loss to Miami.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Vituperative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vituperative. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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