Meanings
comparative more ruthlessly · superlative most ruthlessly
- In a ruthless manner; with cruelty; without pity or compassion.
Standing on the mountain above Caerphilly, one may reflect upon the gap where once stood Llanbradach Viaduct, and look near at hand upon the restored ruins of Caerphilly Castle; man labours to rebuild the mediaeval whilst he ruthlessly scraps the modern.
1939 September, D. S. Barrie, “The Railways of South Wales”, in Railway Magazine, page 1651 more example
Southgate's side kept their nerve and discipline in the unsettling, intimidating surroundings of Budapest, with the behaviour of Hungary's fans leaving much to be desired, to turn up the heat and punish their opponents ruthlessly once they had gone ahead.
2021 September 2, Phil McNulty, “Hungary 0-4 England”, in BBCSynonyms: cruelly, pitilessly
Synonyms & antonyms
adverbIn a ruthless manner; with cruelty; without pity or compassion.
Origin
- Proto-Germanic*hrewwaną
- Proto-West Germanic*hreuwan
- Proto-West Germanic*hreuwu
- Old Englishhrēow
- Middle Englishrewe
- Old Norsehrygðinflu.
- Middle Englishreuþe
- Proto-Indo-European*lewh₁-
- Proto-Indo-European*lewHs-
- Proto-Germanic*leusaną
- Proto-Germanic*lausaz
- Middle Englishreuþeles
- Englishruthless
- Englishruthlessly
Translations
Catalan despietadament, sense pietat
- despietadamentin a ruthless manner
- sense pietatin a ruthless manner
Chinese Mandarin 殘忍地 /残忍地, 無情地 /无情地
- 殘忍地 /残忍地 (cánrěn de)in a ruthless manner
- 無情地 /无情地 (wúqíng de)in a ruthless manner
- 殘酷地 /残酷地 (cánkù de)in a ruthless manner
Estonian halastamatult, armutult
- halastamatultin a ruthless manner
- armutultin a ruthless manner
- julmaltin a ruthless manner
Finnish armottomasti
- armottomastiin a ruthless manner
French impitoyablement, sans foi ni loi
- impitoyablementin a ruthless manner
- sans foi ni loiin a ruthless manner
- cruellementin a ruthless manner
- sadiquementin a ruthless manner
- inhumainementin a ruthless manner
- tenacementin a ruthless manner
German ruchlos, rücksichtslos
- ruchlosin a ruthless manner
- rücksichtslosin a ruthless manner
- unbarmherzigin a ruthless manner
- unerbittlichin a ruthless manner
Hindi क्रूरतापूर्वक
- क्रूरतापूर्वक (krūrtāpūrvak)in a ruthless manner
Italian crudelmente, sadicamente
- crudelmentein a ruthless manner
- sadicamentein a ruthless manner
- senza pietàin a ruthless manner
- spietatamentein a ruthless manner
Polish bezwzględnie, niemiłosiernie
- bezwzględniein a ruthless manner
- niemiłosierniein a ruthless manner
- bezpardonowoin a ruthless manner
Russian беспоща́дно, безжа́лостно
- беспоща́дно (bespoščádno)in a ruthless manner
- безжа́лостно (bezžálostno)in a ruthless manner
- немилосе́рдно (nemilosérdno)in a ruthless manner
- неумоли́мо (neumolímo)in a ruthless manner
- беспардо́нно (bespardónno)in a ruthless manner
Spanish despiadamente, cruelmente
- despiadamentein a ruthless manner
- cruelmentein a ruthless manner
- sádicamentein a ruthless manner
- inhumanamentein a ruthless manner
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
ruthlessly. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruthlessly
“ruthlessly.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruthlessly. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “ruthlessly,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/ruthlessly.
Source: ruthlessly on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.