How to Use sadistic in a Sentence
sadistic
adjective-
The point of it for him is the sadistic boot-on-face-forever.
—WIRED, 24 Sep. 2021
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For all his sadistic faults, at least Bob is a What About Bob? fan.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 26 Apr. 2024
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Is there a sadistic impulse in playing with the viewer that way?
—Adam Nayman, The New Yorker, 28 Aug. 2022
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The text treats it as a matter of course, despite the fact that death by drowning in one’s own tears is uniquely sadistic.
—Longreads, 27 Mar. 2020
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What a nasty, sadistic, evil regime, the Saudi government is.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 20 Oct. 2022
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During that time, Anne was at the mercy of a sadistic governess, Miss Bonner, who tied her hands to the bedposts at night.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2023
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At first, Caleb doesn't believe this is the real Frankie, sure this is another one of Halores's sadistic tricks.
—Andrew Walsh, EW.com, 8 Aug. 2022
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To quash the ever-present threat of a revolt, punishment was sadistic and frequent.
—David Segal, New York Times, 8 July 2023
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Records from phone accounts also tied him to sadistic calls made to the families of victims.
—Christine Pelisek, Peoplemag, 6 June 2024
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Even in the future, though, the in-crowd sucks, and Mary Agnes’ charming crush turns out to have a sadistic streak sharpened by technology.
—Kate Knibbs, Wired, 30 Mar. 2022
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That is sadistic behaviour, a way for a person who feels small to taste a little power.
—Hazlitt, 1 Feb. 2023
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In reality, Mittens was a stone-cold killer with a sadistic streak.
—Matt Richtel, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2023
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The movie is a beastly thing, and proud of it—a gaily sadistic kerfuffle, from which all traces of tenderness have been expunged.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2022
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The switchbacks are torture: tons of little, sadistic hairpin turns.
—Leyton Cassidy, Longreads, 7 May 2024
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Obé – pronounced 'obey' – has that sweet, sweaty irreverence of the coolest new (somewhat sadistic – in a good way) fitness clubs around.
—Jennifer Jolly, USA TODAY, 8 June 2020
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Even Roose Bolton treats his horrible, sadistic son better than this.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 9 Feb. 2024
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The film culminates in an incident of body-shaming that comes close to sadistic slapstick.
—Tom Gliatto, Peoplemag, 10 Jan. 2024
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Our coach, who had been a great player in college with a stint in the pros, was a generally nice guy who, when frustrated, showed a sadistic side.
—Mark Nevins, Forbes, 24 Jan. 2023
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With his yellowy eyes, sadistic laugh and coonskin hat, Farkus looked every bit the villain in this childhood classic.
—Mike Miller, Peoplemag, 17 Dec. 2023
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More of it stemmed from the wretched humanity of the characters trapped within this sadistic world.
—Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 21 Nov. 2023
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Benedict Cumberbatch stars as a sadistic rancher who makes life hell for his new sister-in-law and her son in 1925 Montana.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 1 Mar. 2022
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The whole movie is sadistic, but the catalyzing act of violence is by far the most cruel, compounded by a few too many lovey-dovey flashbacks.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 6 Oct. 2023
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At one point Karl Rahm, the sadistic camp commander, handed out chocolates and sardines to children.
—Douglas Starr, Smithsonian Magazine, 29 Aug. 2023
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At the same time across town, another agent is in the basement of a derelict church trying to disarm the reverend’s equally sadistic brother in hand-to-hand combat.
—Hunter Ingram, Variety, 19 Aug. 2023
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Feyd-Rautha is also the brother of Bautista’s character, the sadistic Glossu Rabban.
—Zack Sharf, Variety, 2 Feb. 2023
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The cable debut of the show that streamed on AMC Plus last year centering on a sadistic killer who cuts up and stitches together his victims.
—Washington Post, 28 Feb. 2022
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Their midlife rut mirrors that of Ed, who turns full-on sadistic in the wake of Stede’s disappearance—which happened the night they were supposed to run away together.
—TIME, 5 Oct. 2023
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Priests who ran the facility sought to alienate him from his parents and culture, and at times subjected him to sadistic abuse.
—Peter Smith, ajc, 14 May 2022
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As Buggy became more sadistic, his limbs were more aggressive with Nami and Zoro.
—Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2023
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And because his approach is likely to become more brutal and sadistic, Ukraine and its international partners must be ready.
—Daniel Baer, Foreign Affairs, 5 Sep. 2023
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sadistic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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