Standard Lemma guide

relentless

adj · 4 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.

  • /ɹɪˈlɛntləs/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: R IH0 L EH1 N T L IH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Unrelenting or unyielding in severity.

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

Steady and persistent; unremitting.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

adjective satellite

Meaning 3

never-ceasing

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • the relentless beat of the drums

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: persistent, unrelenting

Antonyms: none provided

4

adjective satellite

Meaning 4

not to be placated or appeased or moved by entreaty

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • grim determination
  • grim necessity
  • Russia's final hour, it seemed, approached with inexorable certainty
  • relentless persecution
  • the stern demands of parenthood

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: grim, inexorable, stern, unappeasable, unforgiving, unrelenting

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree English relent Proto-Indo-European *lewh1- Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der. Proto-Germanic *leusaną Proto-Germanic *lausaz Proto-Germanic *-lausaz Proto-West Germanic *-laus Old English -lēas Middle English -les English -less English relentless From relent + -less.

Across languages

Translations

69 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Arabic: عَدِيم الشَّفَقَة (ʕadīm aš-šafaqa) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Arabic: قَاسٍ (qāsin) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Bulgarian: неумоли́м (neumolím) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Bulgarian: непрекло́нен (nepreklónen) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Catalan: implacable — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Chinese Mandarin: 永無止境 /永无止境 (yǒngwúzhǐjìng) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Czech: neúprosný — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Czech: nelítostný — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Czech: nemilosrdný — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Czech: nesmiřitelný — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Dutch: meedogenloos — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Finnish: leppymätön — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Finnish: säälimätön — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Finnish: heltymätön — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • French: implacable — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • French: impitoyable — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Galician: implacábel — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Galician: desapiadado — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Georgian: დაუცხრომელი (daucxromeli) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Georgian: დაუღალავი (dauɣalavi) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Georgian: ულმობელი (ulmobeli) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • German: unnachgiebig — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • German: unbarmherzig — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • German: unnachsichtig — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • German: unerbittlich — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Irish: gan staonadh — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Italian: implacabile — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Māori: papahueke — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Polish: nieubłagany — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Polish: nieugięty — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Polish: nieustępliwy — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Portuguese: implacável — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Romanian: sever — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Russian: неумоли́мый (neumolímyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Russian: непрекло́нный (nepreklónnyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Russian: беспоща́дный (bespoščádnyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Russian: безжа́лостный (bezžálostnyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Spanish: no relenteciente — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Ukrainian: безжа́лісний (bezžálisnyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Ukrainian: безжа́льний (bezžálʹnyj) — unrelenting or unyielding in severity
  • Bulgarian: неотсла́бващ (neotslábvašt) — steady and persistent
  • Catalan: inexorable — steady and persistent
  • Czech: nepolevující — steady and persistent
  • Czech: trvalý — steady and persistent
  • Czech: vytrvalý — steady and persistent
  • Czech: neochabujicí — steady and persistent
  • Czech: neustálý — steady and persistent
  • Czech: nepřetržitý — steady and persistent
  • Czech: nekonečný — steady and persistent
  • Dutch: voortdurend — steady and persistent
  • Finnish: periksiantamaton — steady and persistent
  • Finnish: sinnikäs — steady and persistent
  • French: tenace — steady and persistent
  • Galician: inexorábel — steady and persistent
  • Galician: incesante — steady and persistent
  • German: unablässig — steady and persistent
  • German: unermüdlich — steady and persistent
  • Irish: síorleanúnach — steady and persistent
  • Italian: tenace — steady and persistent
  • Latin: inexōrābilis — steady and persistent
  • Māori: āwai — steady and persistent
  • Māori: papahueke — steady and persistent
  • Norwegian Bokmål: nådeløs — steady and persistent
  • Polish: bezustanny — steady and persistent
  • Portuguese: inexorável — steady and persistent
  • Russian: упо́рный (upórnyj) — steady and persistent
  • Russian: неослабева́ющий (neoslabevájuščij) — steady and persistent
  • Spanish: no relenteciente — steady and persistent
  • Ukrainian: невпи́нний (nevpýnnyj) — steady and persistent
Real reading context

relentless in complete knowledge articles