as in brutal
having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others
the troubled youth is being treated by a psychotherapist for his sadistic urges to hurt animals
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sadistic
Yeoh clearly had a blast playing a sadistic, horny version of the kind and upstanding Captain Georgiou who died in Discovery's premiere.
—
Ars Technica, 28 Jan. 2025
Written and directed by Clive Barker in his directorial debut, Hellraiser sees a woman try to banish a sadistic group of demonic beings back to their own dimension after inadvertently releasing from a mysterious puzzle box.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025
Where to watch: In theaters ‘The Rule of Jenny Pen’ (March 7)
The psychological thriller stars Geoffery Rush as a partially paralyzed stroke patient at a retirement home and John Lithgow as the sadistic resident terrorizing him with a dementia doll.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2025
Though not as physically large a man as Homan, Bull Connor, emboldened by his ties to the Ku Klux Klan and gubernatorial patron, projected the kind of sadistic confidence reminiscent of that portrayed by actor Strother Martin as the prison warden in Cool Hand Luke.
—David McGrath, Orlando Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for sadistic 
Ars Technica, 28 Jan. 2025
Written and directed by Clive Barker in his directorial debut, Hellraiser sees a woman try to banish a sadistic group of demonic beings back to their own dimension after inadvertently releasing from a mysterious puzzle box.
—Jonathan Granoff, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025
Where to watch: In theaters ‘The Rule of Jenny Pen’ (March 7)
The psychological thriller stars Geoffery Rush as a partially paralyzed stroke patient at a retirement home and John Lithgow as the sadistic resident terrorizing him with a dementia doll.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2025
Though not as physically large a man as Homan, Bull Connor, emboldened by his ties to the Ku Klux Klan and gubernatorial patron, projected the kind of sadistic confidence reminiscent of that portrayed by actor Strother Martin as the prison warden in Cool Hand Luke.
—David McGrath, Orlando Sentinel, 26 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for sadistic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sadistic
Adjective
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This is why Sisi is still in power and why the West turned a blind eye to his brutal post-Arab Spring power grab.—
Nic Robertson,
CNN,
5 Feb. 2025
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The drop in shootings was bolstered by a five-day streak with no shooting victims that coincided with a brutal cold snap, officials said.—
Thomas Tracy,
New York Daily News,
4 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The current government’s purposeful misrepresentation and defamation of DEI in such a comprehensively cruel and malicious manner deserves nothing less than personal and communal outrage and resistance.—
Dr. Tony Lux,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Feb. 2025
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Immigrant advocates call those moves cruel and unnecessary.—
Joel Rose,
NPR,
8 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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The fans were on their feet and roaring after UCLA center Mara threw an outlet pass reminiscent of legendary predecessor Bill Walton to Eric Dailey Jr. for a vicious one-handed dunk.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Jan. 2025
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Viewers not familiar with Housewives might not realize that Dolores, who thus far this season has been very levelheaded, has a vicious, scrappy alter ego by the name of Patterson Dolores, after her New Jersey stomping grounds.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
30 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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As savage Arctic cold was getting ready to surge south across North America, vivid imagery based on data from weather models showed us what was going to happen.—
Tom Yulsman,
Discover Magazine,
27 Dec. 2022
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The 2023 grand marshal is former Arizona Democratic congresswoman Gabby Giffords, gravely wounded in a savage mass shooting in 2011 that also killed six people.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Dec. 2022
Adjective
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Rachel Weisz and Emma Stone are delicious as the two ruthless favorites of the monarch, who try to outmaneuver each other at all costs.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
9 Feb. 2025
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The ruthless brutality by Iraq and Iran displayed the lengths to which the region’s governments were willing to go to silence the Kurds.—
Sefa Secen & Serhun Al / Made by History,
TIME,
7 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near sadistic
Cite this Entry
“Sadistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sadistic. Accessed 16 Feb. 2025.
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