hateful

adjective

hate·​ful ˈhāt-fəl How to pronounce hateful (audio)
1
: full of hate : malicious
2
: deserving of or arousing hate
hatefully adverb
hatefulness noun

Examples of hateful in a Sentence

the girl's classmates were bullying her online, sending her hateful e-mails and text messages
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
On the other are detractors who call Kirk’s ideology hateful and extreme, criticism that has cost many their jobs as his supporters accuse them of trying to incite further political violence. Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2025 Political analyst Matthew Dowd took to MSNBC to say that Kirk’s hateful words had led to hateful actions. Editorial, Boston Herald, 12 Sep. 2025 In other words, Cartman is irate that Trump has stolen his hateful, vindictive shtick. Nick Marx, The Conversation, 11 Sep. 2025 BlueSky is a microblogging platform that grew in popularity as an alternative to X after Elon Musk bought the latter and changed its algorithm and moderation policies such that fewer actions are taken in response to hateful content. Erin Glynn, Cincinnati Enquirer, 11 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for hateful

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from hate hate entry 1 + -ful -ful entry 1

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hateful was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hateful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hateful. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

Kids Definition

hateful

adjective
hate·​ful ˈhāt-fəl How to pronounce hateful (audio)
1
: full of hate : malicious
hateful enemies
2
: causing or deserving hate
a hateful crime
hatefully adverb
hatefulness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on hateful

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!