vengeful

adjective

venge·​ful ˈvenj-fəl How to pronounce vengeful (audio)
: revengeful: such as
a
: seeking to avenge
b
: serving to gain vengeance
vengefully adverb
vengefulness noun

Examples of vengeful in a Sentence

The robbery was committed by a vengeful former employee. The fire was a vengeful act of destruction.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Something to do with the vengeful atmosphere and disappearing grasslands. Literary Hub, 23 June 2025 After killing Ellen’s youngest son, who’d taken over his dad’s old job on Amity Island, the vengeful shark seemingly follows her all the way down the Bahamas. Keith Phipps, Vulture, 21 June 2025 And the road rage is palpable and knuckle-clenching as a traveling salesman tries to avoid getting run off the road and killed by a vengeful big rig driver. Brian Truitt, USA Today, 20 June 2025 His reporting rejects the tendency of other publications to pathologize Palestinian armed resistance as a vengeful, antidialectical undertaking: the domain of savages whose motivations can be empathized with, but whose methods can never be endorsed as legal, just, or effective. Harpers Magazine, 18 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for vengeful

Word History

Etymology

venge + -ful entry 1

First Known Use

circa 1586, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of vengeful was circa 1586

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Cite this Entry

“Vengeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vengeful. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.

Kids Definition

vengeful

adjective
venge·​ful ˈvenj-fəl How to pronounce vengeful (audio)
: wanting revenge
vengefully adverb
vengefulness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on vengeful

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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