CUTTHROAT Synonyms: 59 Similar and Opposite Words

cutthroat 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of cutthroat

as in ruthless

not guided by or showing a concern for what is right cutthroat business practices intended to drive competitors out of business

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cutthroat

2 of 2

noun

ˈkət-ˌthrōt

as in assassin

a person who kills another person while traveling the ancient Silk Road, traders were constant prey to cutthroats and thieves

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of cutthroat

Adjective

But Rosales said that tradition was fading, possibly another casualty of a more cutthroat political climate. — Ben Paviour, Sacbee.com, 26 June 2026 The show, which follows the cutthroat lives of luxury real estate agents at The Oppenheim Group in Los Angeles, first premiered in 2019. — Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 19 June 2026

Noun

Knowing the history of the cutthroat beer wars of the past is required to understand King Snedley’s unexpected appearance. — Bill Swank, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 June 2026 Others shared similar impressions of a cutthroat job market, in which a glut of overqualified candidates are competing for junior and mid-level software engineering jobs. — Joel Khalili, Wired News, 28 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for cutthroat

Recent Examples of Synonyms for cutthroat

Adjective

Natural selection is usually ruthless about weeding out traits with no function.

— Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Supergirl builds to a final showdown with Krem of the Yellow Hills, the ruthless Brigands leader who murdered Ruthye’s family and poisoned Krypto early in the film.

— Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026

Definition of ruthless

Noun

These artisans, with their trade secrets, were kept on Murano, a cluster of islands just across the lagoon from the city, ostensibly as a precaution against fire, though the state would also send assassins after anyone who tried to leave.

— Cal Revely-Calder, New Yorker, 29 June 2026
As a pirate assassin and post-apocalyptic warrior, Krem of the Yellow Hills connects with Aries.

— Lisa Stardust, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026

Definition of assassin

Adjective

Court records show that 60-year-old Bradley Kyle Martin, of Dearborn Heights, is charged with using a computer or internet to communicate with another person to commit a crime and accosting children for immoral purposes.

— DeJanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 25 June 2026
These monsters—its antitheses—constitute that part of our nature that urges us to be sensible and strong, and that inclines us to see the life drive as trivial, weak, sentimental and immoral.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 June 2026

Definition of immoral

Noun

This psychological thriller stars Guy Pearce as Leonard Shelby, a man with anterograde amnesia struggling to track down his wife’s murderer using a system of tattoos and notes.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026
Deputy Solicitor General Eric Feigin said blocking such searches would handicap police searching for murderers, kidnappers and robbers.

— Bart Jansen, USA Today, 29 June 2026

Definition of murderer

Adjective

In reality, leaders on both sides are corrupt and always on the edge of disaster.

— Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 29 June 2026
My career actually focuses on bonding and preventing taxpayers from being on the hook for the failures of bankrupt and corrupt companies.

— Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2026

Definition of corrupt

Noun

The series starred Melissa Roxburgh as a former FBI profiler who leads a team assembled to hunt down escaped killers who fled a mysterious prison.

— Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 6 July 2026
Carla Walker cold case The 1974 murder of 17-year-old Carla Walker in Fort Worth, Texas, went unsolved for more than four decades before advanced DNA testing helped investigators identify her killer.

— Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 5 July 2026

Definition of killer

Adjective

The Khmer Rouge lost power in 1979, but fighting and instability continued for decades, leaving Cambodia's temples unprotected and vulnerable… easy targets for unscrupulous antiquities dealers like Douglas Latchford.

— Anderson Cooper, CBS News, 28 June 2026
At age 11, my favorite Broadway show was Follies – a classic preteen tale about the decay of female beauty and fading fame within an unscrupulous industry of vaudeville and burlesque.

— Greg Evans, Deadline, 27 June 2026

Definition of unscrupulous

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Style

“Cutthroat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cutthroat. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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Synonyms of cutthroat

adjective

noun

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