as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
a theater critic with a take-no-prisoners approach to reviewing Broadway's latest offerings
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Recent Examples of take-no-prisoners
Harrison confidently adopts the take-no-prisoners physicality that makes Zephyr a worthy foe for Tucker, but her line readings are bland, doing nothing to enliven the basic script by Nick Lepard.
—
Esther Zuckerman, IndieWire, 17 May 2025
Elon Musk embodies it in all its brash, take-no-prisoners glory.
—Leisse Wilcox, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
And no one can remain beautiful, in the same way, forever, though Kilmer’s mischievous, take-no-prisoners smile hadn’t changed much.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 2 Apr. 2025
My mother is a take-no-prisoners kind of woman; in fact, all the women in my family are bulldozers.
—Anna Lee Iijima, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025
Allen Iverson, another take-no-prisoners competitor, had 35 for the East.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025
For Aladdin, Disney’s team built on the take-no-chances, take-no-prisoners lessons of its Broadway predecessors to all but guarantee a quality hit.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2025
With its mile-a-minute pace, commitment to political incorrectness, and acerbic, expletive-laden dialogue, Veep is a far cry from the sunnier comedies on this list, skewering every facet of the political process with a take-no-prisoners attitude.
—Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
The Lions are the most complete team in the league, a byproduct of their fearless coach’s take-no-prisoners mantra.
—Zak Keefer, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024
Esther Zuckerman, IndieWire, 17 May 2025
Elon Musk embodies it in all its brash, take-no-prisoners glory.
—Leisse Wilcox, Forbes.com, 4 Apr. 2025
And no one can remain beautiful, in the same way, forever, though Kilmer’s mischievous, take-no-prisoners smile hadn’t changed much.
—Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 2 Apr. 2025
My mother is a take-no-prisoners kind of woman; in fact, all the women in my family are bulldozers.
—Anna Lee Iijima, Chicago Tribune, 18 Mar. 2025
Allen Iverson, another take-no-prisoners competitor, had 35 for the East.
—Jerry McDonald, The Mercury News, 14 Feb. 2025
For Aladdin, Disney’s team built on the take-no-chances, take-no-prisoners lessons of its Broadway predecessors to all but guarantee a quality hit.
—Vulture Editors, Vulture, 4 Feb. 2025
With its mile-a-minute pace, commitment to political incorrectness, and acerbic, expletive-laden dialogue, Veep is a far cry from the sunnier comedies on this list, skewering every facet of the political process with a take-no-prisoners attitude.
—Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 31 Jan. 2025
The Lions are the most complete team in the league, a byproduct of their fearless coach’s take-no-prisoners mantra.
—Zak Keefer, The Athletic, 25 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for take-no-prisoners
Adjective
-
The ruthless, physical Panthers will get a strong Oilers squad, with Ekholm back on the back end, Skinner emphatically taking back his net from Calvin Pickard, and both McDavid and Leon Draisaitl on top of their games.—
Daniel Nugent-Bowman,
New York Times,
30 May 2025
-
As with everything Banksy, siting and context are chief among the avenues of investigation into the man’s intent and into his his hilariously ruthless nocturnal execution of his art.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
30 May 2025
Adjective
-
The Heat’s roller-coaster season has come to a merciless end.—
Jared Weiss,
New York Times,
29 Apr. 2025
-
This time, his assignment takes him to Serbia, as he is tasked with assassinating the merciless General Mile Valstoria (Peter Linka).—
Christopher Rudolph,
People.com,
10 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Take-no-prisoners.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/take-no-prisoners. Accessed 3 Jun. 2025.
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