as in murderous
eager for or marked by the shedding of blood, extreme violence, or killing
a movie so sanguinary that I covered my eyes during at least half of it
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sanguinary
In a series of sanguinary close-ups, Elvira takes a cleaver to her digits, first slicing them and then fully dismembering them.
—
Andrew McGowan,
Variety,
23 Dec. 2025
The film, documenting the intense, sanguinary attempt by Ukrainian soldiers to retake a village seized by Russian invaders, won Chernov the directing award for World Cinema Documentary at Sundance.
—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
7 July 2025
Mass shootings scarcely register anymore, unless the death toll reaches a certain sanguinary level.
—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
14 July 2024
An appeal to force was an admission of failure, and the pride of the new nation was the sense of overcoming the sanguinary reflexes of the old world.
—
TIME,
31 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for sanguinary
Andrew McGowan,
Variety,
23 Dec. 2025
The film, documenting the intense, sanguinary attempt by Ukrainian soldiers to retake a village seized by Russian invaders, won Chernov the directing award for World Cinema Documentary at Sundance.
—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
7 July 2025
Mass shootings scarcely register anymore, unless the death toll reaches a certain sanguinary level.
—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
14 July 2024
An appeal to force was an admission of failure, and the pride of the new nation was the sense of overcoming the sanguinary reflexes of the old world.
—
TIME,
31 Jan. 2024
See All Example Sentences for sanguinary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sanguinary
Adjective
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Communist organizers, as Harrington feared, began to reshape the DSA as an ally of any anti-Western force, even the most murderous and oppressive.
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Armand looks dissociative and murderous.
Adjective
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Season 3 of the series returned with a bloody episode and a skyrocketing death toll, which continues to rise, as the rival Targaryen factions clashed in the shock-and-awe-inspiring Battle of the Gullet.
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The cannons would've sunk just weeks before the Battle of Savannah, known as one of the bloodiest battles of the Revolutionary War, with over 800 casualties in under an hour.
Adjective
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The Yellow Death has disfigured the population, and soldiers in white-and-red tunics serve the savage Duke of Tviot.
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Josefowicz, in her decathlon of a performance, brought Ligeti’s savage discontinuities to the surface.
Adjective
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And Addy, perhaps the most brutal American Girl story, is enslaved.
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In January, the government suppressed huge nationwide protests in a brutal crackdown that left thousands dead.
Adjective
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Dinah Voyles Pulver, a national correspondent for USA TODAY, writes about violent weather, climate change and other news.
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English soccer fans have earned a reputation for violent hooliganism, hurling plastic chairs and brawling their way across the piazzas and boulevards of Europe.
Cite this Entry
“Sanguinary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sanguinary. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.
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