as in cruel
feeling or showing a desire to cause harm or pain
a mean-spirited person He wrote a mean-spirited book review.
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mean-spirited
While most are supportive, a fair number are critical, even mean-spirited.
—
Barbara Vandenburgh, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023
Barbara Vandenburgh, USA TODAY, 16 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mean-spirited
Adjective
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Even then, the final late twist with the penalty felt particularly cruel.—
Patrick Boyland,
The Athletic,
23 Feb. 2025
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Directed by Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland, Still Alice highlights the cruel nature of the illness, where a person can still feel present while simultaneously losing pieces of themselves, creating a unique kind of grief.—
Travis Bean,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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More than 80 women went public with horrific tales of his brutal, coercive and punishing tactics, including launching vicious, career-crippling smear campaigns against those who eluded him, from Mira Sorvino to Ashley Judd.—
Scott Huver,
The Hollywood Reporter,
28 Feb. 2025
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Rushdie has since spoken out about the stabbing Rushdie, 77, testified in the Chautauqua County, New York trial and detailed the vicious attack that upended his life.—
Alana Wise,
NPR,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The two central characters, a mild bespectacled middle-school geek named Hal and his hateful abusive bully of a twin brother, Bill (both are played by Christian Convery), discover the monkey sealed away in a round box.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
17 Feb. 2025
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Indeed, Ye advertised his Yeezy website during the 2025 Super Bowl broadcast Sunday (Feb. 9), which aired amid a days-long storm of hateful tweets from the star targeting Jewish people.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
10 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Poles needs to find difference-makers, nasty offensive linemen, game-wrecking defensive linemen, ravenous pass rushers … again, the Bears have a lot of needs.—
Jon Greenberg,
The Athletic,
26 Feb. 2025
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Meanwhile, Stacey woke up with a nasty hangover from the night prior.—
Abigail Adams,
People.com,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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In a globalized, corporate, shifting world that can feel unkind to consumers, the fight for Mt. Bachelor is about the desire to capture something cherished and put it back in the hands of the people who love it most.—
John Branch,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2025
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To use his own words against him is unkind, but with a million people relying on him, Dan Campbell crumpled under the pressure.—
Colton Pouncy,
The Athletic,
19 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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There’s also the Ratliff family, consisting of wealthy Southerner Timothy (Jason Isaacs), his pill-popping wife, Victoria (Parker Posey), and their three kids: obnoxious bro Saxon (Patrick Schwarzenegger), religious studies major Piper (Sarah Catherine Hook) and Lochlan (Sam Nivola), the youngest.—
Meredith Blake,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Feb. 2025
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Shirley is young and obnoxious, compulsively going live on Instagram and carrying her phone around on a little beaded leash.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
6 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Biden’s mean-spirited, spiteful actions are only more reasons for Americans to vote Republican in future elections.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Jan. 2025
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Iannucci may spin stories of spiteful people, but Iannucci the person is different.—
John Baldoni,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The arguments Republicans have made in their opposition to Joe Biden’s contemptuous pardons are pretty compelling.—
Noah Rothman,
National Review,
21 Jan. 2025
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Written by Fielding, Richard Naylor and Jon Brittain, the series followed the contemptuous life of the 18th-century highwayman, known in York, England, as a thief, poacher and killer but whose exploits have been widely romanticized in modern culture.—
Lily Ford,
The Hollywood Reporter,
16 Jan. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mean-spirited.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mean-spirited. Accessed 4 Mar. 2025.
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