ISEE/SSAT Vocabulary BuilderWordsRruthless
ISEE/SSATmedium
ruthless
Meaning: without pity or compassion; merciless
ruthless in a sentence
How ruthless is used in real sentences:
The ruthless coach cut players from the team without a second thought.
Investors called the CEO ruthless after she fired half the department overnight.
“Yet the change was not gentle in every detail; a ruthless tide drowned some burrows without pity and forced small mammals uphill.”
— from the passage When the Water Returned
Synonyms for ruthless
Other words for ruthless — merciless, cruel and pitiless — carry the same meaning.
- merciless
- cruel
- pitiless
Antonyms of ruthless
Words that mean the opposite of ruthless:
- merciful
- compassionate
Where it comes from
From Middle English ruthe 'pity' + -less
Memory hook
RUTH-less — without any RUTH (pity), so utterly merciless.