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Synonyms of 'abusive'

Explore 'abusive' in the dictionary
violentadjectiveinsultingadjective
1 (adjective)  a cruel and abusive partner
Synonyms
violent
He was a violent man with a drink and drugs problem.
,
wild
When drunk, he became wild and violent.
,
rough
I was a bit rough with you this morning.
,
cruel
They should spend a long time in jail to reflect on their cruel acts.
the persecution of prisoners by cruel officers
,
savage
This was a savage attack on a defenceless young girl.
,
brutal
He was the victim of a very brutal murder.
,
vicious
He suffered a vicious attack by a gang of youths.
,
destructive
the awesome destructive power of nuclear weapons
,
harmful
the harmful effects of smoking
,
maddened
,
hurtful
Her comments were very hurtful to Mrs Green's family.
,
unrestrained
,
impetuous
He tended to act in a heated and impetuous way.
,
homicidal
,
intemperate
the unwisely intemperate language of the party leader
,
raging
,
furious
A furious gunbattle ensued.
,
injurious
Stress in itself is not necessarily injurious.
,
maniacal
Opposites
kind
,
caring
,
gentle
,
sympathetic
,
humane
,
compassionate
,
benevolent
,
merciful
,
warm-hearted
2 (adjective) 
rude or insulting
He was alleged to have used abusive language.
Synonyms
insulting
One of the workers made an insulting remark to a supervisor.
,
offensive
offensive remarks about minority groups
,
rude
He's rude to her friends.
,
degrading
,
scathing
,
maligning
,
scolding
,
affronting
,
contemptuous
She gave a contemptuous little laugh and walked away.
,
disparaging
He was alleged to have made disparaging remarks.
,
castigating
,
reviling
,
vilifying
,
invective
,
scurrilous
scurrilous rumours
,
defamatory
The article was highly defamatory.
,
insolent
They can be insolent and difficult to get along with.
,
derisive
,
censorious
,
slighting
,
libellous
She claimed the articles were libellous and damaging.
,
upbraiding
,
vituperative
one of journalism's most vituperative critics
,
reproachful
She gave her a reproachful look.
,
slanderous
He wanted an explanation for what he described as `slanderous' remarks.
,
traducing
,
opprobrious
,
calumniating
,
contumelious
Opposites
approving
,
praising
,
flattering
,
complimentary
,
laudatory
,
eulogistic
,
panegyrical
Copyright © 2016 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.

Additional synonyms

in the sense of brutal
cruel
He was the victim of a very brutal murder.
Synonyms
cruel,
harsh,
savage,
grim,
vicious,
ruthless,
ferocious,
callous,
sadistic,
heartless,
atrocious,
inhuman,
merciless,
cold-blooded,
inhumane,
brutish,
bloodthirsty,
remorseless,
barbarous,
pitiless,
uncivilized,
hard-hearted
in the sense of contemptuous
showing or feeling strong dislike or disrespect
She gave a contemptuous little laugh and walked away.
Synonyms
scornful,
insulting,
arrogant,
withering,
sneering,
cavalier,
condescending,
haughty,
disdainful,
insolent,
derisive,
supercilious,
high and mighty,
on your high horse (informal),
contumelious
in the sense of cruel
deliberately causing pain without pity
They should spend a long time in jail to reflect on their cruel acts.
the persecution of prisoners by cruel officers
Synonyms
brutal,
ruthless,
callous,
sadistic,
inhumane,
hard,
fell (archaic),
severe,
harsh,
savage,
grim,
vicious,
relentless,
murderous,
monstrous,
unnatural,
unkind,
heartless,
atrocious,
inhuman,
merciless,
cold-blooded,
malevolent,
hellish (informal),
depraved,
spiteful,
brutish,
bloodthirsty,
remorseless,
barbarous,
pitiless,
unfeeling,
sanguinary,
hard-hearted,
stony-hearted,
implacable

Video: pronunciation of 'abusive'

Nearby words of 'abusive'

  • abundant
  • abundantly
  • abuse
  • abusive
  • abusiveness
  • abut
  • abutment
  • All ENGLISH synonyms that begin with 'A'

Source

Thesaurus for abusive from the Collins English Thesaurus
1 2 3 4

Determiners

Determiners are words that make the reference of nouns more specific. If I say‘ this car’ it is clear that I mean a particular car which is near me. If I change it to‘ my car’ I am saying somethin...
Read more about 'Determiners'
Scrabble score for 'abusive': 12
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