cruel Definition

cruel
adj crueller, cruellest

1. Deliberately and pitilessly causing pain or suffering.

Thesaurus: ruthless, brutal, sadistic, ferocious, vicious, fierce, harsh, callous, bitter, malevolent, remorseless, psychopathic; Antonym: gentle, kind, humane.
2. Painful; distressing.

Example: a cruel blow

Derivative: cruelly
adverb

Derivative: cruelty
noun

The quality of deliberately and pitilessly causing pain or suffering
Thesaurus: barbarity, severity, depravity, savagery, inhumanity, tyranny, bestiality, sadism, spite, venom; Antonym: compassion, pity, mercy.

Etymology: 13c: French, from Latin crudelis, from crudus raw.