as in cruel
likely to seek revenge
be careful not to annoy the vindictive old woman who lives down the street
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Recent Examples of vindictive
Others are more hesitant to face off against an aggressive federal government and a vindictive president looking to inflict pain on his political enemies.
—
Max Tani, semafor.com, 14 July 2025
Now, Americans should assume the companies’ lucrative levers of surveillance and persuasion are at the disposal, if not outright service, of a vindictive president, who’s increasingly unbound by judicial and other checks on his power.
—Max Taves, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
The supernatural thriller sees a woman return from death as a vindictive spirit to torment her adulterous husband.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 June 2025
There was speculation in and around the organization about whether the presence of the federal agents was a form of retaliation by a notoriously vindictive administration.
—Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for vindictive
Max Tani, semafor.com, 14 July 2025
Now, Americans should assume the companies’ lucrative levers of surveillance and persuasion are at the disposal, if not outright service, of a vindictive president, who’s increasingly unbound by judicial and other checks on his power.
—Max Taves, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
The supernatural thriller sees a woman return from death as a vindictive spirit to torment her adulterous husband.
—Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 26 June 2025
There was speculation in and around the organization about whether the presence of the federal agents was a form of retaliation by a notoriously vindictive administration.
—Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for vindictive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vindictive
Adjective
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Auggie isn’t a cruel, withholding bigot, but a stable and loving parent.—
Adam B. Vary,
Variety,
22 Aug. 2025
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The series centers on a group of kids with latent or emerging special abilities who are subjected to cruel experiments at the mysterious institute of the title, along with a local cop (Ben Barnes) whose story intersects with that of the kids.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Here is another example from my work: a luxury brand facing daily phishing attacks receives real-time alerts with direct links to malicious sites, allowing their legal team to act immediately.—
Dima Raketa,
Forbes.com,
27 Aug. 2025
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Whether for malicious purposes or simply research, someone appears to be using OpenAI’s open-source model for ransomware attacks, according to antivirus company ESET.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
26 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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When a vengeful spirit from his past appears, Kubo is forced to go on a quest to find his late father’s legendary armor, aided by companions Monkey (Charlize Theron) and Beetle (Matthew McConaughey).—
Emily Blackwood,
People.com,
17 Aug. 2025
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Their initial wariness soon gives way to friendship and, to Nico’s amazement, a mysterious house, where aunt Gela lives with her faithful dog, is actually full of secrets; and, some claim, vengeful Sicilian spirits.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
13 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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If Hill is still an elite player, and tight end Darren Waller can produce half the production Jonnu Smith gave the Dolphins last year, the passing game will have a vicious bite.—
Omar Kelly
August 25,
Miami Herald,
25 Aug. 2025
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The unique stipulation is the direct result of King's recent, vicious actions against his rival, Myles Borne.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Fans hoping for a revengeful scoring outburst were left wanting a little more, however, as Dončić — a career 28.6 points per game scorer — added only 10 points over the final three quarters.—
Rohan Nadkarni,
NBC News,
26 Feb. 2025
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Eventually, this revengeful streak will result in loneliness and isolation.—
Nicole Froio,
refinery29.com,
29 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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YouTube videos posted from an account linked to the shooter show weapons with racist, homophobic, antisemitic and other hateful scrawlings on them.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
30 Aug. 2025
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Tuesday’s alert is the latest in what’s been a string of hateful defacements this summer.—
Tess Kenny,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The climate for filmmakers looking to interrogate the Russian war effort remains hostile.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
31 Aug. 2025
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The president’s hostile, but at times confusing, remarks over the last several days have put the city on edge as leaders condemned the plan as unnecessary and dangerous.—
Alice Yin,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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As Virginia's next Governor, Abigail will continue to put petty political games aside, put Virginia first, and stand up to the chaos in Washington to deliver for the Commonwealth — because that's the leadership Virginians deserve.—
Andrew Stanton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Aug. 2025
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How petty and pathetic and thin skinned could this administration get?—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
20 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Vindictive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vindictive. Accessed 3 Sep. 2025.
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