hardhandedness

noun

as in oppressiveness

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hardhandedness
  1. malevolence
  2. harshness
  3. meanness
  4. malignity
  5. maliciousness
  6. hatefulness
  7. murderousness
  8. bloodthirstiness
Noun
  • Not for the first time, the president’s clumsiness is likely to negate his malevolence, though not without considerable cost, in time and money, to Comey.
    — Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026
  • The rise of Santa Muerte The other folk saint tied to narco culture is Santa Muerte, whose Grim Reaper appearance and relative obscurity prompt assumptions of malevolence.
    — Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 7 June 2026
Definition of malevolence
Noun
  • Reparations are about exercising a radical vision, thinking beyond the harshness of life, and knowing that something better is possible.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 July 2026
  • The harshness of the response suggested that after nearly five decades of trying to negotiate with the SSPX, the Holy See has had enough.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 July 2026
Definition of harshness
Noun
  • Sometimes the irony turns bitter and, with a typically Eastern European sensibility, highlights the paradoxes of institutions, as well as the madness and meanness born from the pursuit and preservation of power.
    — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 8 June 2026
  • After 1965, when African Americans’ right to vote was constitutionally recognized, the meanness continued.
    — Letters to the Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 May 2026
Definition of meanness
Noun
  • Blumenthal delivered just that—a conspiratorial account of Jewish power, American malignity, and the Islamic Republic’s righteousness.
    — James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 29 July 2026
  • Questioning, if not rejecting, established Christian doctrine, Ahab also comes to regard Moby Dick as the outward and visible sign, the physical embodiment of the indifference or, worse, utter malignity inherent in the universe.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
Definition of malignity
Noun
  • Rather than pursuing code maliciousness, limit code behavior regarding networking calls, file accesses and memory execution.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 12 Feb. 2026
Definition of maliciousness
Noun
  • Trump’s narcissistic obsession with the place, together with the miasmic hatefulness of his words and actions, has caused artists to flee en masse.
    — Alex Ross, New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2026
  • Comment sections have always attracted hatefulness and resentment; these ones just happen to encourage it more explicitly.
    — Rebecca Jennings, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2025
Definition of hatefulness
Noun
  • The guy was a sleaze, but there’s a pretty big gap between sleaziness and murderousness.
    — Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 12 Dec. 2025
Definition of murderousness
Noun
  • The findings can’t be extrapolated to the real world — the scenarios were extreme, with the regimes often facing first strikes or annihilation — but revealed AIs’ skill at strategic reasoning, as well as a certain bloodthirstiness.
    — Tom Chivers, semafor.com, 4 Mar. 2026
Definition of bloodthirstiness
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.

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hardhanded
hardhandedness
hard hat
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Cite this Entry

“Hardhandedness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hardhandedness. Accessed 4 Aug. 2026.

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