as in mercilessness
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Recent Examples of ruthlessness But ruthlessness may not guarantee him reelection. —
Isaac Stanley-Becker, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2026 Such ruthlessness from Russo in scoring her eighth goal in this season’s Champions League — a record in the women’s game for an English player in one European campaign — gave Arsenal a two-goal cushion heading into the second leg a week today (Wednesday). —Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026 The ruthlessness of the producers cutting folk off mid-speech or retracting the microphone and upping the music volume was belittling to those on stage. —Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026 Now, Iranians are likely to be wary about taking to the streets again because the Revolutionary Guard has demonstrated its ruthlessness, said Kamran Matin, an expert on Iran at the University of Sussex in southern England. —Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026 Coppola was not the only director to detect reserves of ruthlessness within Duvall. —Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026 This whole thing — Yasmin’s treachery, Harper’s ruthlessness, Ed’s heel turn, Lisa’s demise — is about the idea of an audit. —Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026 Newspaper headlines screamed that Welch had called out McCarthy for his cruelty, his ruthlessness and his lies. —Kristen Monroe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026 The gossips leak letters indicating the family’s ruthlessness. —Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026
Isaac Stanley-Becker, The Atlantic, 10 Apr. 2026 Such ruthlessness from Russo in scoring her eighth goal in this season’s Champions League — a record in the women’s game for an English player in one European campaign — gave Arsenal a two-goal cushion heading into the second leg a week today (Wednesday). —Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026 The ruthlessness of the producers cutting folk off mid-speech or retracting the microphone and upping the music volume was belittling to those on stage. —Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026 Now, Iranians are likely to be wary about taking to the streets again because the Revolutionary Guard has demonstrated its ruthlessness, said Kamran Matin, an expert on Iran at the University of Sussex in southern England. —Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026 Coppola was not the only director to detect reserves of ruthlessness within Duvall. —Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026 This whole thing — Yasmin’s treachery, Harper’s ruthlessness, Ed’s heel turn, Lisa’s demise — is about the idea of an audit. —Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026 Newspaper headlines screamed that Welch had called out McCarthy for his cruelty, his ruthlessness and his lies. —Kristen Monroe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026 The gossips leak letters indicating the family’s ruthlessness. —Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ruthlessness
Noun
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This action demonstrates the president’s monumental cruelty, total lack of empathy and compassion, pathological narcissism, boundless vengefulness, abysmal ignorance and glaring immaturity.— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 2026
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An animal cruelty investigation was also initiated in Denton County due to the living conditions observed involving both individuals and animals.— S.E. Jenkins, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Adapted for television by Adolescence co-creator, Emmy winner Jack Thorne, in Lord of the Flies, innocence descends into savagery when a group of English schoolboys becomes desert island castaways.— Denise Petski, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026
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After the war, in sober reflection, the United States helped lead a global effort to try to tame the savagery of conflict and, in particular, to shield civilians.— Nicholas D. Kristof, Mercury News, 18 Mar. 2026
Noun
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These young graduates start out naive about the heartlessness of the corporate world and harbor illusory hopes for success in unforgiving professions.— George Packer, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026
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The lives of the two children in the story, aged fourteen and four, are portrayed as being as fleeting as the fireflies, and the story is an unsentimental and unflinching account with moments of both tenderness and heartlessness.— Ginny Tapley Takemori September 4, Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
Noun
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An extra-dark comedy that veers toward sadism, the film is saved by the chemistry and star power of Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas (fresh off their Romancing the Stone series), with an assist from an excellent Danny DeVito.— Debby Wolfinsohn, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Apr. 2026
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Over Your Dead Body is not for the faint of heart, but give or take a rape threat that crosses the line into smug sadism without quite seeming to realize it, the violence lands as more comically cartoonish than horrific.— Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 15 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Yet, while Munro’s denial was a horrible violence, Fremlin’s deplorable acts were the original brutality.— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Apr. 2026
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Nominations in the news, public service and radio/podcast categories span networks, from PBS to ABC and NBC News, with topics ranging from the Los Angeles wildfires to the war in Gaza, immigration and police brutality.— Brande Victorian, HollywoodReporter, 7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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But the inhumanity this historic trail commemorates stands in stark contrast with the enduring human spirit.— Keith Sharon, USA Today, 19 Apr. 2026
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His thoughts on how to live in the world remain inspiring, even as his observations on man’s inhumanity to man and nature have been, unfortunately and increasingly, relevant in the nearly two centuries since his works were published.— Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Even when there is little to celebrate in a world marked by barbarity, these events invite us to be together and, briefly, to look, feel, admire, and even disagree within a temporary gathering of images and spaces.— Raphael Fonseca, Artforum, 2 Apr. 2026
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Thousands of children have been terrorized, detained, and many have been deported because of ICE’s unchecked barbarity.— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 26 Jan. 2026
Noun
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His few lines of dialogue have a power that far exceeds their word count, but what speaks for Jeremy most of the time are his physical gestures, which blend blank detachment with willful ferocity.— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026
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That ferocity of insight isn’t aging.— Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ruthlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/thesaurus/ruthlessness. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
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