SAVAGERY Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

savagery

noun

ˈsa-vij-rē

Definition of savagery

as in cruelty

disposition to willfully inflict pain and suffering on others a study of the savagery shown by soldiers in wartime

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of savagery The Battle of Shiloh in southwest Tennessee on April 6-7, 1862, brought home the savagery of the war as there were more than 24,000 casualties on both sides. — Jim Woods, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2026 Despite Dee’s savagery, Blyth portrays Taylor’s cellmate as loyal and honest — someone who believes in a personal code of conduct. — Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2026 Ben’s twisted misogynist savagery is exhausting from the start. — Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 25 Apr. 2026 Adapted for television by Adolescence co-creator, Emmy winner Jack Thorne, in Lord of the Flies, innocence descends into savagery when a group of English schoolboys becomes desert island castaways. — Denise Petski, Deadline, 6 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for savagery

Recent Examples of Synonyms for savagery

Noun

Law enforcement sources involved in the case told WJZ that the horse was being cared for by someone who is facing animal cruelty and abandonment charges in an unrelated case in West Virginia.

— Tara Lynch, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
The real problem is the culture, and when culture rewards cruelty, the damage spreads.

— Jodi Bondi Norgaard, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of cruelty

Noun

The army Mladic created to fight in Bosnia was a model of ruthlessness, daring and brutality in the Serb warrior tradition, once prized in the life-or-death partisan struggle against the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia in World War Two.

— Ivana Sekularac, USA Today, 27 Aug. 2026
Freya is the granddaughter of Athos — a dog who survived the Russian brutality in Bucha and was found on the street where Ukrainian forces destroyed a large Russian convoy, Danylchenko told the Associated Press in an interview.

— Laurie Kellman, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of brutality

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savageness

savagery

savages

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“Savagery.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/savagery. Accessed 3 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of savagery

noun

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