as in mercilessness
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Recent Examples of ruthlessness
Such ruthlessness from Russo in scoring her eighth goal in this season’s Champions League — a record in the women’s game for an English player in one European campaign — gave Arsenal a two-goal cushion heading into the second leg a week today (Wednesday).
—
Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
The ruthlessness of the producers cutting folk off mid-speech or retracting the microphone and upping the music volume was belittling to those on stage.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026
But, for much of the 2000s, reality television insisted that this was possible, never with more fervor, ruthlessness, and capitalist commitment than on America’s Next Top Model.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Now, Iranians are likely to be wary about taking to the streets again because the Revolutionary Guard has demonstrated its ruthlessness, said Kamran Matin, an expert on Iran at the University of Sussex in southern England.
—Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026
Coppola was not the only director to detect reserves of ruthlessness within Duvall.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
This whole thing — Yasmin’s treachery, Harper’s ruthlessness, Ed’s heel turn, Lisa’s demise — is about the idea of an audit.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Newspaper headlines screamed that Welch had called out McCarthy for his cruelty, his ruthlessness and his lies.
—Kristen Monroe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
The gossips leak letters indicating the family’s ruthlessness.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026
Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
The ruthlessness of the producers cutting folk off mid-speech or retracting the microphone and upping the music volume was belittling to those on stage.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 16 Mar. 2026
But, for much of the 2000s, reality television insisted that this was possible, never with more fervor, ruthlessness, and capitalist commitment than on America’s Next Top Model.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
Now, Iranians are likely to be wary about taking to the streets again because the Revolutionary Guard has demonstrated its ruthlessness, said Kamran Matin, an expert on Iran at the University of Sussex in southern England.
—Dallas Morning News, 28 Feb. 2026
Coppola was not the only director to detect reserves of ruthlessness within Duvall.
—Peter Tonguette, The Washington Examiner, 27 Feb. 2026
This whole thing — Yasmin’s treachery, Harper’s ruthlessness, Ed’s heel turn, Lisa’s demise — is about the idea of an audit.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 23 Feb. 2026
Newspaper headlines screamed that Welch had called out McCarthy for his cruelty, his ruthlessness and his lies.
—Kristen Monroe, Chicago Tribune, 17 Feb. 2026
The gossips leak letters indicating the family’s ruthlessness.
—Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ruthlessness
Noun
-
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
-
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
-
After the war, in sober reflection, the United States helped lead a global effort to try to tame the savagery of conflict and, in particular, to shield civilians.—
Nicholas D. Kristof,
Mercury News,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Its deep psychological and philosophical meditations on civilization and savagery, religion and spirituality, man’s relationship with himself and others, and his connection with the land are dense at times but always rewarding.—
The Know,
Denver Post,
15 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
These young graduates start out naive about the heartlessness of the corporate world and harbor illusory hopes for success in unforgiving professions.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
16 Mar. 2026
-
The lives of the two children in the story, aged fourteen and four, are portrayed as being as fleeting as the fireflies, and the story is an unsentimental and unflinching account with moments of both tenderness and heartlessness.—
Ginny Tapley Takemori
September 4,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Over Your Dead Body is not for the faint of heart, but give or take a rape threat that crosses the line into smug sadism without quite seeming to realize it, the violence lands as more comically cartoonish than horrific.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
15 Mar. 2026
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The series begins before Gein has ever killed, in 1945, as dawning awareness of death camps in Europe fills the air with sadism and conspiracy thinking.—
Daniel D'Addario,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
During the May 2020 George Floyd demonstration, protesters in downtown Los Angeles briefly shut down portions of the 101 Freeway after entering near Alameda Street, temporarily halting traffic to draw attention to the killing of Floyd and broader concerns about police brutality.—
Cierra Morgan,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Mihankhah spent roughly 15 years trying to raise awareness about the brutalities of the Iranian government.—
Alexandria Burris,
IndyStar,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
His thoughts on how to live in the world remain inspiring, even as his observations on man’s inhumanity to man and nature have been, unfortunately and increasingly, relevant in the nearly two centuries since his works were published.—
Television Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Mar. 2026
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But the level of violence, the level of inhumanity, the level of atrocity in Iran, is what moves me.—
Lily Moayeri,
Rolling Stone,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Thousands of children have been terrorized, detained, and many have been deported because of ICE’s unchecked barbarity.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Cathy escapes, the Jimmies' numbers are diminished, and the stomach-churning barbarity finally comes to an end.—
Megan McCluskey,
Time,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Over the past few years, Gulf Arab states had moved to significantly improve relations with Iran, but experts say the ferocity of Tehran’s attacks against them has given new life to the notion that the Islamic Republic remains their most formidable threat.—
Becky Anderson,
CNN Money,
26 Mar. 2026
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The ferocity of Monday's downpour even took National Weather Service meteorologists aback.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ruthlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ruthlessness. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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