RUTHLESS | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
/ Sign up
English (UK)

Meaning of ruthless in English

ruthless
adjective
uk
/ˈruːθ.ləs/ us
/ˈruːθ.ləs/
Add to word list Add to word list
C2
not thinking or worrying about any pain caused to others; cruel:
ruthless ambition
a ruthless dictator
Some people believe that to succeed in this world you have to be ruthless.
Synonyms
merciless disapproving
pitiless
relentless
remorseless formal
unsparing (HIDING NOTHING)
Thesaurus: synonyms, antonyms, and examples
not kind to someone or something and causing pain
  • cruelTeasing them for being overweight is cruel.
  • callousHe had a callous disregard for the feelings of others.
  • cold-bloodedThe budget is based on a cold-blooded analysis of the markets.
  • ruthlessHe was a ruthless dictator.
  • heartlessHe has been described as a heartless boss by several employees.
See more results »
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Unkind, cruel & unfeeling
See more results »

Related words

ruthlessly
ruthlessness
(Definition of ruthless from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

ruthless | American Dictionary

ruthless
adjective
us
/ˈruθ·ləs/
Add to word list Add to word list
cruel, or determined to succeed without caring about others:
a ruthless ruler
To compete abroad requires ruthless cost-cutting at home.
(Definition of ruthless from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

Examples of ruthless

ruthless
Certainly both are ruthless in pursuit of their agendas.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Neither is corruption a by-product of ruthless capitalism, which promotes self-interest and maximum economic growth as opposed to the interests of the community.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Even the ruthless radicalism with which the lovers embrace and pursue their passion to the exclusion of all else speaks to the new, harsher spirit.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
They also point vividly upwards to the absence of supportive political scripts amid ruthless, market-driven processes of global social change.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
One storyteller, for instance, remembered strict, ruthless teachers - a harrowing experience.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
In his relationship with his wife, he is ruthless, par ticularly when his authority is threatened.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
He was known to be tough and unrelenting, and he could be ruthless and vindictive.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Here tales of ruthless courtsponsored persecution of dissidents appear fundamental.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
Positive words glamorize humans' ruthless genetic manipulation of other species.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
This collection would have benefited from more substantial introductions, a tighter editorial focus, and a ruthless culling of inferior chapters.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
And that he carried his knowledge with him always as though it were a banner, with a quality ruthless, lonely, and almost proud.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The emergency experience has restrained successive rulers from developing ruthless measures of population control.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The age of the lone entrepreneur is passing, superseded by a less personal, more ruthless system in thrall to the pitiless logic of hard capital.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
What good does it do to remove a ruthless dictator if his followers hold similar views of outsiders?
From the Cambridge English Corpus
The imperial bureaucracy was rigid, chauvinistic and often ruthless, but it was determinedly civilian in character and dedicated to high, well-defined professional standards.
From the Cambridge English Corpus
These examples are from corpora and from sources on the web. Any opinions in the examples do not represent the opinion of the Cambridge Dictionary editors or of Cambridge University Press or its licensors.
What is the pronunciation of ruthless?
 

Translations of ruthless

in Chinese (Traditional)
無情的, 冷酷的, 殘忍的…
See more
in Chinese (Simplified)
无情的, 冷酷的, 残忍的…
See more
in Spanish
implacable, despiadado, despiadado/da [masculine-feminine…
See more
in Portuguese
insensível, desumano, implacável…
See more
in more languages
in Marathi
in Japanese
in Turkish
in French
in Catalan
in Dutch
in Tamil
in Hindi
in Gujarati
in Danish
in Swedish
in Malay
in German
in Norwegian
in Urdu
in Ukrainian
in Telugu
in Arabic
in Bengali
in Czech
in Indonesian
in Thai
in Vietnamese
in Polish
in Korean
in Italian
निर्दयी…
See more
冷酷な, 非情な, 冷酷（れいこく）な…
See more
merhametsiz, acımasız, zalim…
See more
impitoyable, sans pitié…
See more
despietat, implacable…
See more
genadeloos…
See more
பிறருக்கு ஏற்படும் வலியைப் பற்றி சிந்திக்கவோ கவலைப்படவோ கூடாது, கொடுமையான…
See more
निष्ठुर…
See more
નિર્દય, નિષ્ઠુર…
See more
hensynsløs…
See more
obarmhärtig, skoningslös…
See more
kejam…
See more
unbarmherzig…
See more
skruppelløs, hensynsløs, nådeløs…
See more
بے رحم, سنگدل, ظالم…
See more
безжалісний, немилосердний…
See more
ఇతరులకు కలిగే నొప్పి గురించి ఆలోచించకపోవడం లేదా చింతించకపోవడం, క్రూరమైన…
See more
قاس, مُتحَجّر القَلب…
See more
নিষ্ঠূর, নির্মম…
See more
bezohledný…
See more
kejam…
See more
ไร้ความปรานี…
See more
tàn nhẫn…
See more
bezwzględny, bezlitosny…
See more
무자비한, 가차없는…
See more
senza scrupoli, spietato, crudele…
See more
Need a translator?

Get a quick, free translation!

Translator tool
 

Browse

rusty
rut
rutabaga
ruthenium BETA
ruthless
ruthlessly
ruthlessness
Rutland
rutted

Word of the Day

spokes

UK
/spəʊk/
US
/spoʊk/

any of the rods that join the edge of a wheel to its centre, so giving the wheel its strength

About this

Blog

Worse than or worst of all? How to use the words ‘worse’ and ‘worst’

New Words

brokefishing

More new words
has been added to list
To top
Contents
EnglishAmericanExamplesTranslations
English (UK)   Change
English (UK) English (US) Español Русский Português Deutsch Français Italiano 中文 (简体) 正體中文 (繁體) Polski 한국어 Türkçe 日本語 Tiếng Việt Nederlands Svenska Dansk Norsk हिंदी বাঙ্গালি मराठी ગુજરાતી தமிழ் తెలుగు Українська
Follow us
Choose a dictionary
  • Recent and Recommended
  • Definitions
    Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English
    English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
  • Grammar and thesaurus
    Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English
    Grammar Thesaurus
  • Pronunciation
    British and American pronunciations with audio
    English Pronunciation
  • Translation
    Click on the arrows to change the translation direction.
    Bilingual Dictionaries
    • English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
    • English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
    • English–Dutch Dutch–English
    • English–French French–English
    • English–German German–English
    • English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
    • English–Italian Italian–English
    • English–Japanese Japanese–English
    • English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
    • English–Polish Polish–English
    • English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
    • English–Spanish Spanish–English
    • English–Swedish Swedish–English
    Semi-bilingual Dictionaries
    English–Arabic English–Bengali English–Catalan English–Czech English–Danish English–Gujarati English–Hindi English–Korean English–Malay English–Marathi English–Russian English–Tamil English–Telugu English–Thai English–Turkish English–Ukrainian English–Urdu English–Vietnamese
  • Dictionary +Plus
    Word Lists
Contents
My word lists

To add ruthless to a word list please sign up or log in.

Sign up or Log in
My word lists

Add ruthless to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

More
Go to your word lists
Tell us about this example sentence: