How to Use spiteful in a Sentence
spiteful
adjective-
Its shock to the body is matched with a spiteful slap to the eardrum.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 21 Nov. 2022
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That's the spiteful meme most are trying to fight against.
—Alexandra Deabler, Fox News, 29 Apr. 2018
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That's a fraction of the fights this spiteful bully has picked over the years.
—The Indianapolis Star, 18 July 2022
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Jane Austen, the great artist of spiteful snobbery and petty vengeance, knew this well.
—Charlie Tyson, The Atlantic, 13 May 2021
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What intrigued me the most are the twisted stories about camels who are known to be spiteful and hold a grudge.
—Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 4 Dec. 2023
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The man who was talking turned away, and so did the others, except for one who stared me down, his spiteful eyes full of plans.
—David Rabe, The New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2020
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Forbes’ manner isn’t one of someone who is spiteful, rather it’s of a man who worked to find inner peace.
—Omar Abdel-Baqui, USA TODAY, 15 Dec. 2020
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He's been acting like a spiteful 65-year-old child ever since.
—Tribune News Service, OregonLive.com, 17 June 2017
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To me, the union’s decision is spiteful and only harms students.
—baltimoresun.com, 12 May 2021
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At one point, the address of Fang Fang’s house in Wuhan was published, and people wrapped rocks with spiteful messages and lobbed them over her wall.
—Peter Hessler, The New Yorker, 5 Oct. 2020
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Now that Nate has turned into a spiteful rival coach, both the actor and his fans have reservations.
—Marco Della Cava, USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2023
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This has had an adverse effect for him as the spiteful trolls are attacking him for his kindness.
—Noelle Devoe, Seventeen, 3 May 2017
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This has had an adverse effect for him as the spiteful trolls are attacking him for his kindness.
—Noelle Devoe, Seventeen, 3 May 2017
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But that’s how petty and spiteful Trump’s climate policy has proven to be.
—Emily Atkin, New Republic, 12 Sep. 2017
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Season 2, episode 4 The women band together to save an old oak tree, but the tree sits on the property of a very spiteful woman.
—Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 1 May 2017
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Season 2, episode 4 The women band together to save an old oak tree, but the tree sits on the property of a very spiteful woman.
—Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 13 Feb. 2017
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In the long term, having a spiteful team member is much harder to manage and can have a ripple effect on the engagement of the wider team.
—Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 6 May 2023
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You should not be held captive for years because your spiteful almost-ex is dragging things out.
—Abigail Van Buren, Twin Cities, 9 Nov. 2019
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That battle may have ended in a stalemate, but the feud took a darker turn a few years later, when 4chan users were more focused and more spiteful.
—Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 1 Feb. 2022
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Some people from Chiloé even carry a potato in their pocket like an amulet to ward off spells cast by spiteful neighbours.
—Mark Johanson, The Economist, 28 Aug. 2020
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Three local boys in a passing car add to her horrific ordeal with their own spiteful taunts.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Jan. 2022
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Although cognizant of the system that oppressed him, Forbes’ manner isn’t one of someone who is spiteful, rather it’s of a man who worked to find inner peace.
—Omar Abdel-Baqui, Detroit Free Press, 14 Dec. 2020
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There's nothing spiteful about the delay, Forrester said; the permitting process simply took longer than hoped.
—Sven Berg, idahostatesman, 14 May 2018
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Anyone who has worked the red carpet for years will be inoculated against the spiteful tabloid comments about a glimpse of cellulite, or a stray gray hair.
—Daisy Goodwin, Time, 17 May 2018
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Luckily for us there were more than enough people for Channon to remain spiteful and amusing about.
—Mark Peikert, Town & Country, 14 Feb. 2022
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With help from the sprite Ariel, Prospero seeks revenge via the storm of the play’s name, while dealing with complications from the spiteful island lifer Caliban.
—James Hebert, sandiegouniontribune.com, 20 Oct. 2017
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But the spiteful public debate over the NFL’s kneeling protesters?
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 30 Sep. 2017
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This is a spiteful attack on a citizen and freedom of expression.
—James Masters, CNN, 16 Oct. 2017
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Uncle Boris didn’t warn Sammy, which makes these scenes feel more Kushner than Spielberg — as if some kind of delayed, spiteful vengeance is playing out.
—Armond White, National Review, 30 Nov. 2022
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Relationship management is a hugely important part of the game—let your guard down, and your team will become a group of angry, spiteful misanthropes who refuse to get along.
—Aaron Zimmerman, Ars Technica, 8 May 2023
Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spiteful.' 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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