as in malice
the desire to cause pain for the satisfaction of doing harm
nothing more than unprovoked meanness drove him to smash the child's toy
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Recent Examples of meanness
The result is a movie where the jokes are just mean, and the meanness isn’t funny, leading to a cynical denouement that’s been done many times before.
—
Katie Rife, IndieWire, 16 Mar. 2026
Scott inflicts Ohm’s nonchalant meanness with a piercingly perverse matter-of-factness that places the character as far away as possible from the realm of likeability.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 15 Mar. 2026
There is still some of that here, but a lot of Martin’s light-touch meanness is drowned out by his insistence on describing his characters within the context of early COVID — pulling out those masks from the closet.
—Literary Hub, 12 Mar. 2026
There is still some of that here, but a lot of Martin’s light-touch meanness is drowned out by his insistence on describing his characters within the context of early COVID — pulling out those masks from the closet.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026
It is hoped that political ad campaigns would aim to lessen the meanness and divisiveness and vulgarity that have damaged our democracy.
—Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
Katie Rife, IndieWire, 16 Mar. 2026
Scott inflicts Ohm’s nonchalant meanness with a piercingly perverse matter-of-factness that places the character as far away as possible from the realm of likeability.
—Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 15 Mar. 2026
There is still some of that here, but a lot of Martin’s light-touch meanness is drowned out by his insistence on describing his characters within the context of early COVID — pulling out those masks from the closet.
—Literary Hub, 12 Mar. 2026
There is still some of that here, but a lot of Martin’s light-touch meanness is drowned out by his insistence on describing his characters within the context of early COVID — pulling out those masks from the closet.
—Emma Alpern, Vulture, 10 Mar. 2026
It is hoped that political ad campaigns would aim to lessen the meanness and divisiveness and vulgarity that have damaged our democracy.
—Chicago Tribune, 25 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meanness
Noun
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Officers arrested Granger on Tuesday and charged him with rape, aggravated assault, malice murder, and two counts of felony murder.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
1 Apr. 2026
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Peterson said there was no evidence of malice by Dance and that good faith is presumed for public officers.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The post-liberals stand for cruelty and inanity, but Brooks can’t admit to standing for much of anything at all.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
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In an era of near continuous cruelty by the administration, the imprisonment of the boy and his father attracted massive media and political attention and eventually saw both released on February 1.—
Dominic Patten,
Deadline,
30 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The woman who was bitten, later identified as 46-year-old Gabriela Bautista of Moorpark, died March 19 as a result of rattlesnake venom toxicity, the Ventura County medical examiner’s office told KTLA.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2026
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Do not apply a tourniquet, slash the wound with a knife or attempt to suck out the venom, officials warned.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
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What was disturbing were people who sped past a foot away from elderly people, shouting obscenities with faces twisted in hatred.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
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Këkht Aräkh is not unique in his loneliness; the pain of being alone is as thematically central to DSBM as the hatred of Christianity.—
Sadie Sartini Garner,
Pitchfork,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Meanness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meanness. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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