as in horrific
very bad or evil; deserving of hate or contempt
These murders were especially heinous. the heinous brutality of the attack
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Recent Examples of heinous
These are the moments that hit me, of the heinous memories and choices and consequences.
—
Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
These are the moments that hit me, of the heinous memories and choices and consequences.
—Gillian Telling, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
But the morning attack at Minneapolis’ Annunciation Church seemed to plumb unusually heinous depths of cruelty, even as crimes driven by religious bias continue to rise.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
That hideous incentive triggered My Lai and other similarly heinous attacks.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Sep. 2025
These are the moments that hit me, of the heinous memories and choices and consequences.
—Gillian Telling, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
But the morning attack at Minneapolis’ Annunciation Church seemed to plumb unusually heinous depths of cruelty, even as crimes driven by religious bias continue to rise.
—Marc Ramirez, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
That hideous incentive triggered My Lai and other similarly heinous attacks.
—Matthew Carey, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for heinous
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heinous
Adjective
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There are many moments in the trailer that showcase some horrific imagery, such as Nina screaming and crying, and what appears to be the character also holding a bloody shard of glass.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
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As users sought information about Kirk’s condition, the bot, Grok, declared to some of them that the horrific footage was satire.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But everything changes when a string of gruesome killings—which grow increasingly bizarre, with victims covered in rashes and found in deranged, violent states—involves his young daughter Hyo-jin (Kim Hwan-hee).—
Travis Bean,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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TikTok prohibits gory, gruesome or extremely violent clips.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The sickening moment of Kirk's murder was captured on video and has been viewed by tens of millions of people.—
Melissa Galbraith,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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The song comments on the sickening glee that’s been spread in some corners in the aftermath of Kirk’s death.—
Andy Greene,
Rolling Stone,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The premiere also came with the shocking announcement of a double elimination next week.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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The speed at which Kirk’s death became content was almost as shocking as the assassination itself.—
Marly Berlin,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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This behavior is disgusting and they should be fired.—
Zach LaChance,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Sep. 2025
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And yet … those conversations are also entertainingly provocative, and they’re accompanied by some of the scariest and most disgusting scenes the series has delivered up to now.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Yes, there are so much terrible stuff online.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
14 Sep. 2025
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But that obviously terrible call compromised the integrity of that game last night, and that's something the sport should be looking to avoid.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Can a horrible 17-year-old turn into a 31-year-old person with integrity and empathy?—
R. Eric Thomas,
Mercury News,
16 Sep. 2025
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Can a 17-year-old horrible person turn into a 31-year-old person with integrity and empathy?—
R. Eric Thomas,
Denver Post,
16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The only debate is which of his five interceptions against LSU was the ugliest and/or costliest in a 20-10 loss.—
David Ubben,
New York Times,
15 Sep. 2025
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The results were ugly and caused lasting damage to our citizens' livelihoods and our city's reputation.—
Ted Wheeler,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Heinous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heinous. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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