vindictive

CEFRB2

/vɪnˈdɪk.tɪv/

adjective

Türkçe translations

Translating…

In plain English

  1. 01

    adjective

    Wanting to hurt someone in return for harm received.

  2. 02

    adjective

    Extra detail

    Having a tendency to seek revenge when wronged, vengeful.

Examples

  • He became quite vindictive after his wife left him.

  • Tom can be very vindictive.

At a glance

Sits at B2 on the CEFR scale

Senses
2
Parts of speech
1
Citations
3
Synonyms
5

Deep Dive

More examples

In context

  • The vindictive mockery in her voice made his brain quiver.

  • Lord Avonleigh was an angry rather than a vindictive man. Vindictiveness requires more energy of character than he possessed. Indeed, it may be questioned whether he would of himself have taken the violent measures of the preceding evening.

  • The victors will exact vindictive penalties and the losers of course will undertake to pay, but none of them realizes that money is going to do the most extraordinary things to them when they begin upon that.

Synonyms

Quick test

Two questions on this entry. Nothing is scored.

Question 1 · Quick check

After losing the game, the blank player tried to hurt the winner's reputation.

Practise this properly in the app, where the word comes back before you forget it.

Nearby

Origin

adjective

From Latin vindicta (“vengeance”) + -ive. Contrast Latin vindicātīvus.