brutally

comparative more brutally · superlative most brutally

1. In a brutal manner; viciously, barbarically.

   "You sit there," said Henry brutally.

   1930, Norman Lindsay, Redheap, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, →OCLC, page 134

   3 more examples

   From another point of view, it was a place without a soul. The well-to-do had hearts of stone; the rich were brutally bumptious; the Press, the Municipality, all the public men, were ridiculously, vaingloriously self-satisfied.

   1918, W[illiam] B[abington] Maxwell, chapter XXII, in The Mirror and the Lamp, Indianapolis, Ind.: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, →OCLC

   England's World Cup dreams fell apart under a French onslaught on a night when their shortcomings were brutally exposed at the quarter-final stage.

   2011, Tom Fordyce, Rugby World Cup 2011: England 12-19 France

   And this year, some of the granite facades have a new addition - the blue and yellow of the flag of Ukraine. It's hardly surprising to see the Scots, a nation more attuned to independence than some, showing solidarity with a country brutally invaded by Russia.

   2022 November 30, Paul Bigland, “Destination Oban: a Sunday in Scotland”, in RAIL, number 971, page 75

2. In a direct way that does not attempt to hide, disguise, or mask unpleasantness; directly.

   He was not an expert but he was brutally honest by saying he couldn’t help the customer find a solution.

   1 more example

   Beeching concludes, rather brutally, that "a high proportion of stopping passenger train services ought to be discontinued as soon as possible... and as soon as procedure permits".

   2023 March 8, Gareth Dennis, “The Reshaping of things to come...”, in RAIL, number 978, page 47

3. slangExtremely.

   You know, I am so glad I never did it with someone I had lukewarm feelings for. Christian is brutally hot, and I am going to remember tonight forever.

   1995, Amy Heckerling, Clueless, spoken by Cher (Alicia Silverstone)

   1 more example

   The first piece of the night is Shostakovich. Its first movement is a sedate, haunting, almost melodramatic nocturne, but before too long the concerto changes gear and becomes energetic, discordant, feral. It's lengthy, too, a real work-out, and much of it is brutally difficult to execute. He's on form tonight. Close to flawless, and his audience — which he cannot see or hear — seems rapt.

   2019 April 10, qntm, “CASE HATE RED”, in There Is No Antimemetics Division, →ISBN, page 137