1
as in aggressive
feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
die-hard fans who became truculent and violent after their team's loss
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abusive
marked by harsh insulting language
a theater critic who was notorious for his titanically truculent reviews
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
played the role of a disturbed and truculent villain
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of truculent
Little kids squirm in makeshift beds trying to stay awake for Santa, while truculent teenagers sneak out into the suburban night to do secret teenager things.
—
Jessica Kiang, Variety, 17 May 2024
Russia’s truculent and obstructionist foreign policy under President Vladimir Putin comes from a sense of having lost the Cold War in the 1980s and having suffered the consequences of the defeat in the 1990s.
—Odd Arne Westad, Foreign Affairs, 27 Mar. 2018
Mexico City is so inept, so compromised by the cartels, and so truculent that joint military action seems a pipe dream.
—Christian Schneider, National Review, 21 Dec. 2023
Chinese forces have adopted a truculent approach to prosecuting those claims.
—Joel Gehrke, Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2023
See all Example Sentences for truculent 
Jessica Kiang, Variety, 17 May 2024
Russia’s truculent and obstructionist foreign policy under President Vladimir Putin comes from a sense of having lost the Cold War in the 1980s and having suffered the consequences of the defeat in the 1990s.
—Odd Arne Westad, Foreign Affairs, 27 Mar. 2018
Mexico City is so inept, so compromised by the cartels, and so truculent that joint military action seems a pipe dream.
—Christian Schneider, National Review, 21 Dec. 2023
Chinese forces have adopted a truculent approach to prosecuting those claims.
—Joel Gehrke, Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2023
See all Example Sentences for truculent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for truculent
Adjective
-
With how aggressive Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has been on fourth down, Fangio has to treat third down like second down.—
Ted Nguyen,
The Athletic,
23 Jan. 2025
-
So far, investors have been relieved President Donald Trump has backed away from aggressive, across-the-board tariffs during his first days in office.—
Medora Lee,
USA TODAY,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The 2014 legislation also benefited the children of veterans and students without reliable housing or living in abusive households.—
Alexandra Glorioso,
Miami Herald,
29 Jan. 2025
-
The departure follows in the wake of a number of European cinema bodies and figures quitting X in recent months – including the Berlinale and Venice head Alberto Barbera – amid concerns about a surge in disinformation and abusive content on the platform since Musk took ownership in 2022.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
27 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Related article Japan’s leader demands answers from China over schoolboy’s fatal stabbing The sentiment is rooted in bitter memories of Japan’s invasion and brutal occupation in the 1930s and 1940s and fueled by present-day territorial disputes.—
Chris Lau,
CNN,
24 Jan. 2025
-
Many excellent and capable people from rural areas were lost to this brutal movement, leading to a generational impact on China's progress.—
John Ruwitch,
NPR,
24 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Three Israeli hostages were released to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Sunday following a ceasefire deal between Israel and the militant group Hamas.—
Rachel Scully,
The Hill,
19 Jan. 2025
-
Palestinian statehood remains very difficult question for Israel to answer, pushed further away by the October 7 attacks and 15 months of brutal war in Gaza against Palestinian militant group Hamas.—
Ellie Cook,
Newsweek,
19 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
There would be nothing more insulting to our democracy, and to the memory of those who died in connection to that day, than letting rioters walk free.—
Michael Gfoeller And David H. Rundell,
Newsweek,
15 Jan. 2025
-
This disastrous budget is even more insulting as Los Angeles County grapples with the devastation from four major fires.—
Bill Essayli,
Orange County Register,
11 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Cutting off people from healthcare, childcare, and other services is cruel.—
Jonathan Granoff,
Newsweek,
29 Jan. 2025
-
Banek has requested the Illinois Department of Public Health probe the cruel death, also asking that all evidence associated with the case be preserved.—
Charles Selle,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Instead, she was hounded out of the classroom by authorities hostile to Western literature.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
26 Jan. 2025
-
Last year, Trump's predecessor Joe Biden fired the inspector general of the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board, after an investigation found the official had created a hostile work environment.—
Riley Beggin,
USA TODAY,
25 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Grant’s Daniel Cleaver, who definitively did not die in a plane crash as suggested in Bridget Jones’ Baby (2016), is as outrageous as ever.—
Lily Ford,
The Hollywood Reporter,
29 Jan. 2025
-
Thereafter a series of outrageous deaths tear their family apart.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
24 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near truculent
Cite this Entry
“Truculent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/truculent. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share