Cruel

Pronunciation

• RP enPR: kroÍžoÉ™l, IPA: /kɹuːəl/
• Rhymes: -ÊŠÉ™l

Origin

Middle English, from Old French, from Latin crūdēlis ("hard, severe, cruel"), akin to crūdus ("raw, crude"); see crude.

Full definition of cruel

Adjective

1. Not nice; mean; heartless.The supervisor was very cruel to Josh, as he would always give Josh the hardest, most degrading work he could find.
2. (slang) Cool; awesome; neat.

Synonyms

• brutal
• sadistic
• vicious

Antonyms

• merciful

Derived terms

• cruelly

Related terms

• crude
• crudeness
• cruelty

Verb

1. To spoil or ruin (one's chance of success)

Anagrams

• lucre
• ulcer