despiteful

adjective

di-ˈspīt-fəl How to pronounce despiteful (audio)
Definition of despitefulnext
as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it despiteful treatment of his poor relations during their visit

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for despiteful
  1. malicious
  2. cruel
  3. vicious
  4. hateful
Adjective
  • While conceding that standard phishing methods, those that typically require threat actors to craft malicious emails that are delivered to a wide audience, are relatively easy for email platforms to detect and block, that’s not the case with this phishless attack.
    Davey Winder, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2025
  • Alec Baldwin sues New Mexico, claiming malicious prosecution.
    Ryan Fonseca, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2025
Definition of malicious
Adjective
  • And having more thoughtful conversations doesn’t preclude the need sometimes to confront those who are needlessly cruel or organizations that benefit from such exploitation.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 18 Jan. 2025
  • In recent months, the Justice Department and the state filed thousands of pages of new records in the lawsuit, including reports and sworn statements from pediatricians, scholars and others who describe Florida’s policies as archaic and cruel.
    Carol Marbin Miller, Miami Herald, 17 Jan. 2025
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • That’s when Evans, in a full sprint, blindsided Lattimore with a vicious hit in the back and knocked him to the ground.
    Rick Stroud, Orlando Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2025
  • Several fast-growing wildfires fueled by a vicious Southern California wind storm are devastating communities across the Los Angeles region, with homes being burned to the ground and tens of thousands of people evacuating to safety.
    Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY, 10 Jan. 2025
Definition of vicious
Adjective
  • There’s no legal argument to be made against this turn away from fact-checking and towards a more freewheeling, more disinformation-laden, more confusing, more hateful and less illuminating approach.
    New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 13 Jan. 2025
  • With Zuckerberg’s decision to rescind policies barring hateful speech, he’s made clear that distinction is worth the possibility of political clout come Inauguration Day.
    Makena Kelly, WIRED, 9 Jan. 2025
Definition of hateful
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.

Thesaurus Entries Near despiteful

despite

despiteful

despitefully

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Cite this Entry

“Despiteful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/despiteful. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

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