1
as in malice
the desire to cause pain for the satisfaction of doing harm
there was a natural nastiness about him that was evident from the time he was a small child
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in grossness
the quality or state of being obscene
the nastiness of the graffiti required that the school remove it immediately
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in dustiness
the state or quality of being dirty
the piles of rotting food in the kitchen were only one element in the apartment's general impression of appalling nastiness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nastiness
No wonder a little nastiness surfaced at the fair when the Senate candidates took reporters’ questions.
—
Laura Washington, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Laura Washington, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nastiness
Noun
-
More than avoiding malice, we are called to take responsibility for the impact of our words.—
Andrew Weinstein,
Time,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Understand that controlling behaviors may stem from fear and insecurity rather than malice.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Brain rot has become unavoidable, its grossness ubiquitous.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
20 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Victims of a snake bite are advised not to try to remove the venom themselves or to tie off the bite area.—
Latoya Gayle,
PEOPLE,
8 Sep. 2025
-
Wolf spider bites are not poisonous and won't cause sores or body-wide symptoms from its venom.—
Carrie Madormo,
Health,
6 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Scott also wanted that level of vulgarity because the song was inspired by true events.—
Mya Abraham,
VIBE.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
The sour stench of the carcasses was a vulgarity almost too great to bear.—
Nathaniel Rich,
Harpers Magazine,
20 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
An earnest, has-a-costume-for-everything kind of guy, Daub is allergic to the greige and the dinge.—
Sandra Upson,
Wired,
18 Jan. 2021
-
Dinges said the two crewmembers whose sleep remained steady -- even in the absence of conventional daylight -- were those who kept to a strict schedule and found other ways to control their biological clocks.—
Michael Nedelman,
CNN,
1 June 2017
Noun
-
This is another fatalistic image of the single track on which homosexual desire is condemned to run, love inevitably curdling into hatred.—
Garth Greenwell,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Irish rap trio Kneecap has been banned from entering Canada, with the government accusing the group of allegedly promoting violence and hatred and supporting terrorist groups.—
Stephen Daw,
Billboard,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
This will avoid causing damage to the sealant and potential staining.—
Patricia Shannon,
Southern Living,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Critically, the ancient teeth from betel nut chewers are distinguishable because of red staining.—
Elizabeth Rayne,
ArsTechnica,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
But her private letters to her sister Cassandra show a sharper and more astringent person, someone whose cruelty and bitterness were redeemed only by her jokes.—
Lucy Worsley
September 16,
Literary Hub,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Justice came for Petal when her previous owner was arrested and charged with cruelty to animals on September 12, a press release from CGHS stated.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nastiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nastiness. Accessed 22 Sep. 2025.
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