Word
sadistic
Phoneticssadis·tic
US/səˈdɪstɪk/
UK/sɐdˈɪstɪk/
Definition
adj. getting pleasure or enjoyment from hurting other people or seeing them suffer.
adj. deriving pleasure, especially sexual gratification, from inflicting pain, suffering, or humiliation on others.
Examples
“The villain in the movie has a sadistic personality.”
“The prison guards were accused of sadistic behavior toward the inmates during the night shift.”
“Psychologists distinguish between instrumental aggression used to achieve a goal and purely sadistic acts where the primary motivation is the enjoyment of another's distress.”
Examples
simple
“The villain in the movie has a sadistic personality.”
contextual
“The prison guards were accused of sadistic behavior toward the inmates during the night shift.”
complex
“Psychologists distinguish between instrumental aggression used to achieve a goal and purely sadistic acts where the primary motivation is the enjoyment of another's distress.”
Usage
Often used predicatively after linking verbs like 'be', 'seem', or 'become'.
Real-World Examples
“There is not an ounce of empathy from this sadistic, schoolgirl sex killer.” Etymology
From sadist + -ic.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.