Standard Lemma guide

brutish

adj · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • UK: /ˈbɹuːt.ɪʃ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • rhymes with -uːtɪʃ
  • CMU ARPABET: B R UW1 T IH0 SH Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Of, or in the manner of a brute.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

adj

Meaning 2

Bestial; lacking human sensibility.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: animalistic, beastly, barbaric, wolfish, animalesque, animalian, animalish, animal-like, bestial, brutish, barbarian, barbarious, barbarous, brutal, Gothic, Gothlike, grim, heathen, heathenish, heathenly, heathenous, incivil, pagan, savage, tenebrose, truculent, uncivil, uncivilized, uncouth, uncultivated, uncultured, uplandish

Antonyms: none provided

3

adjective satellite

Meaning 3

resembling a beast; showing lack of human sensibility

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • beastly desires
  • a bestial nature
  • brute force
  • a dull and brutish man
  • bestial treatment of prisoners

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: beastly, bestial, brute(a), brutal

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English brute Proto-Indo-European *-iskos Proto-Germanic *-iskaz Proto-West Germanic *-isk Old English -isċ Middle English -ish English -ish English brutish From brute + -ish.

Across languages

Translations

24 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: животински (životinski) — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Danish: dyrisk — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • German: brutal — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Hungarian: bunkó — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Irish: brúidiúil — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Scottish Gaelic: brùideil — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Spanish: cafre — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Spanish: abrutado — Of, or in the manner of a brute
  • Bulgarian: зверски (zverski) — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Bulgarian: скотски (skotski) — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Danish: brutal — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • German: bestial — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • German: bestialisch — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Hungarian: bunkó — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Hungarian: állatias — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Irish: brúidiúil — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Irish: brútach — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Irish: ainmhíoch — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Irish: madrúil — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Scottish Gaelic: brùideil — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Swedish: rå — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Swedish: bestialisk — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Swedish: brutal — Bestial; lacking human sensibility
  • Swedish: djurisk — Bestial; lacking human sensibility