as in malicious
having or showing a desire to cause someone pain or suffering for the sheer enjoyment of it
the virulent look on her face warned me that she was about to say something unkind
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Recent Examples of virulent
Today, the Russian influence in the global south has waned, but it has been replaced by a more virulent impact from China.
—
Bill Gray, The Mercury News, 12 Feb. 2025
During the cold, damp winter months, certain viruses may thrive and become more virulent, Fergus told Fox News Digital.
—Amy McGorry, Fox News, 1 Feb. 2025
Salvini has directed his most virulent language, however, toward the tens of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers, mostly from Africa, who attempt to reach Italy via the Mediterranean Sea.
—Ronald Niezen, The Conversation, 29 Jan. 2025
Indeed, in early January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said none of the vaccines available on the market matched the current virulent strain found in the most recent outbreak.
—Julie Creswell, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for virulent
Bill Gray, The Mercury News, 12 Feb. 2025
During the cold, damp winter months, certain viruses may thrive and become more virulent, Fergus told Fox News Digital.
—Amy McGorry, Fox News, 1 Feb. 2025
Salvini has directed his most virulent language, however, toward the tens of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers, mostly from Africa, who attempt to reach Italy via the Mediterranean Sea.
—Ronald Niezen, The Conversation, 29 Jan. 2025
Indeed, in early January, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said none of the vaccines available on the market matched the current virulent strain found in the most recent outbreak.
—Julie Creswell, New York Times, 24 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for virulent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for virulent
Adjective
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Fraudsters are increasingly using generative AI to write convincing phishing emails, improve deepfakes, and draft new forms of malicious code — making scams harder to detect.—
Sam Sabin,
Axios,
11 Mar. 2025
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The best way to safeguard yourself from malicious apps is to have antivirus software installed on all your devices.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
Fox News,
11 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Ferran’s Blanche puts up a vicious fight, but Mescal’s Stanley relishes the roughhousing.—
Charles McNulty,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2025
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At age 55, the director of the vicious South Korean social satire Parasite specializes in adolescent appeal.—
Armond White,
National Review,
12 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Immigration advocates call the crackdown cruel and wrongheaded and warn that many Latino U.S. citizens will likely suffer violations of their civil rights and possibly even get mistakenly deported.—
Dave Goldiner,
New York Daily News,
6 Mar. 2025
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As mere surrogates, the Trump-DeSantis fight to outdo each other through mean and cruel policies will go on.—
Letters to the Editor,
Orlando Sentinel,
6 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Mayo tweeted four different screenshots appearing to come from his Instagram direct messages, all expressing hateful words at the transfer guard, following the Jayhawks’ 78-73 defeat to Texas Tech.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
2 Mar. 2025
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The students were protesting the expulsion of two students who stormed a Columbia University classroom in January and allegedly threw around flyers filled with hateful speech.—
Stepheny Price,
Fox News,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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And then, to top a nasty joke with a nastier one, he was deemed useless for the final twenty years of his life.—
Jackson Arn,
The New Yorker,
10 Mar. 2025
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That jab opened up several nasty cuts around Rountree's eye and on the bridge of his nose.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes,
8 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Virulent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/virulent. Accessed 15 Mar. 2025.
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