INDEX:
1. words for describing people who are cruel
2. cruel behaviour/punishments/treatment
3. deliberately cruel in order to upset someone
4. cruel behaviour
5. to treat a person or animal in a cruel way
6. not cruel
RELATED WORDS
opposite
↑ KIND
to treat someone badly and use them for your own advantage : ↑ USE
see also
↑ UNKIND
↑ VIOLENT
↑ BAD
↑ STRICT/NOT STRICT
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1. words for describing people who are cruel
▷ cruel /ˈkruːəl/ [adjective]
someone who is cruel deliberately causes pain or makes people suffer :
▪ Children can sometimes be very cruel.
▪ Brand was a cruel and intimidating man who abused his children and his wife.
cruel to
▪ Her parents were very cruel to her when she was young.
cruelly [adverb]
▪ The prisoners were so cruelly beaten that some even died in captivity.
▷ ruthless /ˈruːθləs/ [adjective]
so determined to get what you want that you do not care how much you harm other people :
▪ These men are ruthless terrorists and will kill anyone who tries to stop them.
▪ Father could be quite ruthless about getting his own way.
▪ the ruthless dictator, Joseph Stalin
ruthlessly [adverb]
▪ All political opponents were ruthlessly executed.
▷ heartless /ˈhɑːʳtləs/ [adjective]
not feeling any pity and not caring about other people or their problems :
▪ How can you be so heartless?
▪ In his autobiography, he portrays his father as cold and heartless.
▪ She was a heartless, money-grabbing woman who made her fortune from the misery and desperation of others.
▷ tyrannical /tɪˈrænɪk ə l, təˈrænɪk ə l/ [adjective]
using your power to cruelly force other people to do what you want :
▪ Lewis was a tyrannical boss who frightened and humiliated his employees.
▪ Thousands of refugees fled the tyrannical regime in search of political freedom.
▷ sadistic /səˈdɪstɪk/ [adjective]
someone who is sadistic gets pleasure from making other people suffer :
▪ The principal was a sadistic man who enjoyed tormenting his students.
▪ In the film, Khan portrays a murderer who gets a deep sadistic thrill out of killing.
▪ ‘I’m afraid you will never see your children again,’ he said with a sadistic smile.
sadistically [adverb]
▪ The man was taken deep into a Mississippi forest by a local gang and sadistically murdered.
▷ sadist /ˈseɪdɪst, ˈseɪdəst/ [countable noun]
someone who enjoys being cruel to other people :
▪ Andrea’s father was an absolute sadist. It’s not surprising she hates him.
▷ bully /ˈbʊli/ [countable noun]
someone who uses their authority or strength to frighten or hurt someone who is weaker :
▪ A group of kids stood by and watched the school bully beat up a smaller boy.
▪ Critics describe the mayor as an arrogant bully who hates to be contradicted.
▷ tyrant /ˈtaɪ ə rənt/ [countable noun]
someone in a position of power who treats other people very cruelly :
▪ She was a tyrant who had absolutely no tolerance for mistakes.
2. cruel behaviour/punishments/treatment
▷ cruel /ˈkruːəl/ [adjective]
intended to upset someone or make them suffer :
▪ Lyle was always playing cruel jokes on his little sister.
▪ The electric chair is possibly the cruellest method of execution.
it is cruel to do something
▪ I think it’s cruel to keep dogs locked up inside all day.
▷ barbaric /bɑːʳˈbærɪk/ [adjective]
extremely cruel, in a way that shocks people :
▪ We consider the death penalty to be barbaric.
▪ the barbaric treatment of civilians in the concentration camps
▷ inhuman /ɪnˈhjuːmən/ [adjective]
very cruel and not showing any of the pity or concern that normal people feel when they see other people suffering :
▪ The prison conditions in this country are inhuman.
▪ The government has been accused of using artificial and inhuman criteria to decide which refugees should be deported.
▷ inhumane /ˌɪnhjuːˈmeɪn/ [adjective]
inhumane treatment/conditions/methods etc
actions or conditions that are not considered acceptable because they cause too much suffering :
▪ Amnesty International is protesting against the inhumane treatment of these political prisoners.
▪ This method of slaughtering chickens is now regarded by many as inhumane.
▷ cold-blooded /ˌkəʊld ˈblʌdə̇d◂/ [adjective usually before noun]
cold-blooded murder/killing/attack
a murder etc done without showing any feeling or pity for the person who is attacked :
▪ The entire nation has been shocked by the cold-blooded murder of the two girls.
▷ in cold blood /ɪn ˌkəʊld ˈblʌd/ [adverb]
if you kill someone in cold blood, you kill them in a cruel and deliberate way without showing any emotion :
▪ The killers hunted Pedro down like an animal and murdered him in cold blood.
3. deliberately cruel in order to upset someone
▷ malicious /məˈlɪʃəs/ [adjective]
deliberately cruel and unkind to someone because you really want to upset them and enjoy doing so :
▪ Miss Simms took a malicious pleasure in other people’s misfortunes.
▪ Mr Jameson dismissed the allegations as malicious rumours.
▪ Nixon’s family called Stone’s depiction of the late President ‘erroneous and malicious’.
maliciously [adverb]
▪ Beatrice maliciously delighted in Catherine’s dismay.
malice /ˈmælɪs, ˈmæləs/ [uncountable noun]
▪ Heard told the court that he had acted out of love and not malice.
▪ ‘I see,’ she said, and her small eyes glimmered with malice.
▷ spiteful /ˈspaɪtf ə l/ [adjective]
deliberately nasty to someone in order to hurt or upset them, especially because you are jealous of them or are angry with them :
▪ On the rare occasions when he was angry, Lowry could be spiteful and petty.
spiteful to
▪ You shouldn’t be so spiteful to your sister.
▪ I tried to like Julie but I couldn’t forget how spiteful she’d been to me in the past.
spitefully [adverb]
▪ ‘Doreen never liked you,’ Rob said spitefully.
▷ spite /spaɪt/ [uncountable noun]
a feeling of wanting to hurt or upset other people by saying or doing cruel things, especially if you feel jealous or think you have been unfairly treated :
▪ Gerald’s feelings of injustice turned to bitterness and spite.
pure/sheer spite
spite and nothing else
▪ Ignore what Martin says. It’s pure spite.
out of spite
because of spite
▪ She quit college and worked as a waitress out of spite towards her parents.
▷ vindictive /vɪnˈdɪktɪv/ [adjective]
deliberately cruel and unfair because you want to harm someone who has harmed you :
▪ ‘I’ll pay her back for this.’ ‘Don’t be so vindictive. It doesn’t help anyone.’
▪ Doug could be nasty and vindictive when he was drinking.
vindictiveness [uncountable noun]
▪ Tom’s generosity to his friends was matched by vindictiveness to those who fell out of his favour.
4. cruel behaviour
▷ cruelty /ˈkruːəlti/ [uncountable noun]
cruel treatment or behaviour :
▪ What kind of person could treat a fellow human being with such cruelty?
▪ Her black eye and bruises were undeniable evidence of his cruelty.
cruelty to
▪ Burnett has campaigned against cruelty to animals for more than 20 years.
▷ abuse /əˈbjuːs/ [uncountable noun]
deliberately cruel treatment of someone, especially someone in your family that you are supposed to care for :
▪ Doctors believed that there was no evidence of abuse, despite the woman’s claims.
child abuse
cruel treatment of children
▪ There has been an increase in the number of cases of child abuse.
sexual abuse
when someone forces another person to take part in sexual activities
▪ a victim of sexual abuse
▷ bullying /ˈbʊliɪŋ/ [uncountable noun]
cruel treatment of someone who is smaller, younger, or weaker - use this especially about children being cruel to other children :
▪ The government has become involved in the effort to solve the problem of bullying in schools.
▷ mistreatment/ill-treatment/maltreatment /mɪsˈtriːtmənt, ɪl ˈtriːtmənt, mælˈtriːtmənt/ [uncountable noun]
cruel treatment of people or animals, especially those you have some control over :
▪ There can be no good reason for the ill-treatment of factory-farm animals.
▪ Jailers singled out certain prisoners for maltreatment.
▪ There can be no excuse for the mistreatment of people seeking asylum in this country.
▷ persecution /ˌpɜːʳsɪˈkjuːʃ ə n, ˌpɜːʳsəˈkjuːʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
cruel treatment of people because of their religious or political beliefs, or because of the race they belong to :
▪ Many Jews fled to America to escape persecution in Europe.
▪ Katya asked the United States to protect her from persecution in her home country.
persecution of
▪ the relentless persecution of American Communists in the 1950s
▷ atrocities /əˈtrɒsɪtiz, əˈtrɒsətizǁəˈtrɑː-/ [plural noun]
extremely cruel and shocking actions against people, especially during a war :
▪ Survivors from the concentration camps had witnessed unspeakable atrocities.
commit atrocities
▪ Retreating soldiers told stories of awful atrocities committed by the enemy.
▷ sadism /ˈseɪdɪz ə m/ [uncountable noun]
taking pleasure in cruel acts :
▪ Sadism may stem from a desire to dominate.
▪ Mzukwa grew quiet as he recalled the brutality and sadism of the prison guards.
▷ inhumanity /ˌɪnhjuːˈmænɪti, ˌɪnhjuːˈmænəti/ [uncountable noun]
cruelty that includes violence and a complete lack of sympathy for people’s suffering :
▪ Reformists were appalled by the immorality and inhumanity of the slave trade.
▪ The novel focuses on the inhumanity of prisons and labour camps.
5. to treat a person or animal in a cruel way
▷ be cruel to /biː ˈkruːəl tuː/ [verb phrase]
▪ My father drank too much and was often very cruel to my mother.
▪ It is unspeakably cruel to the prisoners to house them in such conditions.
▷ mistreat/ill-treat /mɪsˈtriːt, ɪl ˈtriːt/ [transitive verb]
to deliberately treat a person or animal in a cruel way, especially when you are responsible for looking after them :
▪ It looks as though this dog has been mistreated by its owner.
▪ Neighbours were sure that the young couple had been ill-treating their children.
▷ bully /ˈbʊli/ [transitive verb]
to be cruel to someone who is weaker, younger, or has less authority than you :
▪ A group of girls would bully the younger kids, and force them to give them money.
▪ The court heard that the head of department would routinely bully and humiliate workers.
▷ abuse /əˈbjuːz/ [transitive verb]
to treat someone in your family or someone you are responsible for in a cruel way, especially violently or sexually :
▪ My father abused us for years.
▪ Erica runs a hostel for women who have been abused by their husbands.
sexually abuse
force someone to take part in sexual activities
▪ Erik testified he was sexually abused by his father since the age of 6.
▷ persecute /ˈpɜːʳsɪkjuːt/ [transitive verb]
to be cruel to a person or group of people over a period of time, because of their race or their religious or political beliefs :
▪ Countries all over Europe have persecuted gypsies for centuries.
▪ Human rights advocates say racial minorities continue to be persecuted.
persecution /ˌpɜːʳsɪˈkjuːʃ ə n/ [uncountable noun]
▪ They left the country to escape religious persecution.
▷ treat somebody like dirt /ˌtriːt somebody laɪk ˈdɜːʳt/ [verb phrase] informal
to treat someone as if they were completely worthless and not care about their feelings :
▪ She treats him like dirt but he still loves her.
▪ I wanted us to be friends again, but I wasn’t prepared to be treated like dirt to achieve it.
▷ pick on /ˈpɪk ɒn/ [transitive phrasal verb] informal
to choose someone from a group to treat cruelly and unfairly especially by repeatedly criticizing them :
▪ Bullies usually pick on younger children.
▪ Why don’t you pick on someone your own size?
▪ Older members of staff often pick on an apprentice and make his life a misery.
▷ victimize also victimise British /ˈvɪktɪmaɪz, ˈvɪktəmaɪz/ [transitive verb usually passive]
if a person or group is victimized, they are treated unfairly, for example because of their beliefs, their race, or because they are weak :
▪ He wasn’t happy at the school and said he was victimized because of his colour.
▪ The company says she was not dismissed because of her political activities but she claims she was victimized.
6. not cruel
▷ humane /hjuːˈmeɪn/ [adjective]
treating people or animals in way that is not cruel and causes them as little pain or suffering as possible :
▪ Imprisonment is not a humane form of punishment.
▪ French revolutionaries considered death by guillotine to be a more humane method of execution.
humanely [adverb]
▪ We must all try to treat farm animals more humanely.