brutality

noun

bru·​tal·​i·​ty brü-ˈta-lə-tē 

plural brutalities

1

: the quality or state of being brutal

2

: a brutal act or course of action

Synonyms

• atrociousness
• atrocity
• barbarity
• barbarousness
• cruelness
• cruelty
• fiendishness
• heartlessness
• inhumanity
• inhumanness
• sadism
• savageness
• savagery
• truculence
• viciousness
• wantonness

Examples of brutality in a Sentence

the brutalities of a prison

the police were accused of brutality for using excessive force in making arrests

Recent Examples on the Web

This new process was driven by high-profile national incidents of police brutality, including the slaying of teenager Laquan McDonald by a Chicago police officer. —Forrest Claypool, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2025

The mural near the White House went up in summer 2020 to protest police brutality and as a rebuke to President Trump in his first term. —Cuneyt Dil, Axios, 11 Mar. 2025

The other part of Muhammad’s point has to do with the very real examples of police brutality. —C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 7 Mar. 2025

Senseless acts of brutality not only rob the victims of their lives but shatter the sense of safety that each of us should feel in this community. —Baltimore Sun Editorial Board, Baltimore Sun, 6 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin brūtālitāt-, brūtālitās, from brūtālis "brutish, bestial" + Latin -itāt-, -itās -ity — more at brutal

First Known Use

1550, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for brutality

• banality
• bestiality
• carnality
• centrality
• chirality
• duality
• fatality
• finality
• formality
• frugality
• legality
• lethality

Kids Definition

brutality

noun

bru·​tal·​i·​ty brü-ˈtal-ət-ē 

plural brutalities

1

: the quality or state of being brutal

2

: a brutal act or course of action