How to Use vicious in a Sentence

vicious

adjective
Definition of viciousnext
Synonyms for viciousnext
  • I know you're upset with her, but there's no need to be vicious.
  • Shamet caught the ball and hammered it in off two steps over Hayes for the vicious and-one play.
    — Dana Scott, The Arizona Republic, 22 Apr. 2022
  • The public face of the pro-life movement looks at the moment loony and vicious.
    — Peggy Noonan, WSJ, 4 Aug. 2022
  • The vicious attack has stunned those who knew Tabby and his many fans around the world.
    — Patricia Meschino, Rolling Stone, 4 Apr. 2022
  • The move may have been for the best, as the vicious battle was just getting started.
    — Taijuan Moorman, USA TODAY, 10 Oct. 2024
  • This fight cuts to the heart of the often vicious disagreements about what role AI should have in our world.
    — Kate Knibbs, WIRED, 4 Sep. 2023
  • That top line is vicious, but the Huskies need not always rely on them.
    — Kat Cornetta, BostonGlobe.com, 13 Feb. 2023
  • Villains are one thing, but then there is the vicious, cruel and bath-avoidant Mary.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 27 June 2024
  • Years earlier the two had been in a vicious fight that put Abed in the hospital.
    — Nathan Thrall, Curbed, 25 Oct. 2023
  • The payments set a vicious cycle that shows no signs of slowing.
    — Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 14 Nov. 2023
  • He’s known to fire off a vicious tweet (or whatever they’re called in the land of X) to call out the fearmongers.
    — Steven Levy, WIRED, 22 Dec. 2023
  • Over the next dozen years, Haitian rebels and French soldiers waged a vicious war of attrition.
    — Matthew Brown, Washington Post, 24 Mar. 2024
  • Whatever the reason, sailors say, the course took a vicious turn.
    — Dave Philipps, New York Times, 9 Dec. 2022
  • Again, don’t expect a high number of reps, but expect a vicious pump at the end your drop set.
    — Jeff Tomko, Men's Health, 24 Mar. 2023
  • An inability to sleep can be the start of a vicious cycle.
    — Yuliya Klochan, Health, 30 Mar. 2024
  • Many of the prominent of my racket turn righteous, which is to say vicious, and why not?
    — David Mamet, National Review, 31 Mar. 2022
  • Soaring with the ball in his right hand, Jaquez threw down a vicious dunk over the helpless defender.
    — Austin Knoblauchassistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2023
  • The show's a little more clever, a little more vicious, and a lot more fun than the other zombie fare out there.
    — Sara Netzley, EW.com, 27 June 2022
  • Uncle followed the first blow with even more vicious ones, and each crack of the whip sounded like thunder in my ears.
    — Mohammed Naseehu Ali, The New Yorker, 25 Mar. 2024
  • That battle is what led a British officer to compare the area to the insect with a vicious sting.
    — Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 13 June 2024
  • In the third quarter, Locke delivered a vicious hit on Michael Pittman to knock the ball out of the Colts receiver’s hands.
    — Ryan McFadden, The Denver Post, 16 Dec. 2024
  • After all, that’s his comfort zone — floating with his head above the rim, one arm cocked to throw down a vicious dunk.
    — Julia Poe, Chicago Tribune, 26 Dec. 2022
  • World & Nation The Ukraine war’s most vicious fight is happening in Bakhmut.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 25 Apr. 2023
  • These shortcomings despite the fact that heat is a vicious killer.
    — Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2024
  • How much longer will Vladimir Putin prosecute his vicious war in Ukraine?
    — Christopher Helman, Forbes, 18 Aug. 2022
  • The late Tony Siragusa was amusing but could be vicious at times.
    — Mike Preston, Baltimore Sun, 14 July 2024
  • At the time of writing this piece, almost 200 Starbucks stores have unionized, in the face of vicious union-busting.
    — Micah Uetricht, The New Republic, 4 Aug. 2022
  • There was a vicious cycle that was set in motion by the mortgage crisis.
    — Nushrat Rahman, Detroit Free Press, 17 Apr. 2024
  • The Netflix hit’s second season can’t quite break out of its own vicious cycle.
    — Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 26 Dec. 2024
  • While the participants are motivated by the promise of billions of dollars, the soldiers, who appear unconcerned with the game’s vicious nature, have chosen to work for the Front Man for other reasons.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 26 Dec. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'vicious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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