adj ·Common ·High school level

Definitions

Adjective

1. 1
   Savagely violent, vicious, ruthless, or cruel, often in an unintelligent manner.

   "The game was brutal, but after a bloodbath he finally won."

2. 2
   Crude or unfeeling in manner or speech.
3. 3
   Harsh; unrelenting.
4. 4
   Disagreeably precise or penetrating.
5. 5
   In extreme metal, to describe the speed of the music and the density of riffs. figuratively

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6. 6
   Direct and without attempt to disguise unpleasantness.

   "brutal honesty"

Adjective

1. 1
   disagreeably direct and precise wordnet
2. 2
   (of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering wordnet
3. 3
   resembling a beast; showing lack of human sensibility wordnet
4. 4
   punishingly harsh wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms

barbaricbeastlysavageviciousabominableabstruse

Antonyms

All antonyms

gentlekindkindly

Example

More examples

"An overwhelming majority voted to abolish the brutal punishment."

Etymology

From Medieval Latin brutalis (“savage, stupid”), from Latin brūtus (“dull, stupid”).

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.