pitiless

adjective

piti·​less ˈpi-ti-ləs 

: devoid of pity : harsh, cruel

pitilessly adverb

pitilessness noun

Synonyms

• affectless
• callous
• case-hardened
• cold-blooded
• compassionless
• desensitized
• hard
• hard-boiled
• hard-hearted
• heartless
• indurate
• inhuman
• inhumane
• insensate
• insensitive
• ironhearted
• merciless
• obdurate
• pachydermatous
• remorseless
• ruthless
• slash-and-burn
• soulless
• stony
• stoney
• stonyhearted
• take-no-prisoners
• thick-skinned
• uncharitable
• unfeeling
• unmerciful
• unsparing
• unsympathetic

Examples of pitiless in a Sentence

The soldiers were pitiless toward their enemy.

gave the beggar in the street a pitiless look and kept on walking

Recent Examples on the Web

At heart, In a Violent Nature isn’t an art film playing on horror tropes but something like the inverse: a pitiless old-school slasher that simply takes a roundabout and rather scenic path to the usual scuzzy thrills. —A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 31 May 2024

Get Citation Request Reprint Permissions Play Download Article In the first lecture of any introduction to international relations class, students are typically warned of the pitiless consequences of anarchy. —Jonathan Kirshner, Foreign Affairs, 29 Jan. 2021

Advertisement The paint mass market has no shortage of options available: Behr, the pitiless paint god at whose Home Depot altar I am often forced to worship, boasts nearly 4,000 colors, and selecting one is just the beginning. —Liz Raiss, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2024

In this pitiless post-war zone, victims victimize others to their mutual detriment. —Guy Lodge, Variety, 15 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

pitiless

adjective

piti·​less ˈpit-i-ləs 

ˈpit-ᵊl-əs

: having no pity : harsh, cruel

pitilessly adverb