lascivious

adjective

lə-ˈsi-vē-əs How to pronounce lascivious (audio)
Definition of lasciviousnext
1
as in pornographic
depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society was criticized for making lascivious remarks that offended many in the group

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in passionate
having a strong sexual desire an exposé about the lascivious playboy

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 lascivious Ramon has been charged three counts of lewd and lascivious acts against a minor under the age of 14, according to court records. — Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 4 Sep. 2026 When Demetrius Carl Davis was arrested in April 2022, he was charged with 32 felony counts of committing a lewd or lascivious act with a child younger than 14 years old. — Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 3 Sep. 2026 He was charged with lewd and lascivious battery on a victim 12 to 16 years old. — Natasha Holt, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026 Following his March 18 arrest in Arkansas, Joseph Duggar was charged in Bay County with lewd and lascivious behavior — molestation of a victim less than 12 years old — and lewd and lascivious behavior conducted by a person 18 years or older. — Kevin Dolak, HollywoodReporter, 11 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for lascivious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lascivious
  1. pornographic
  2. passionate
  3. obscene
  4. hot
  5. vulgar
  6. lustful
  7. nasty
  8. libidinous
Adjective
  • On the day of the $50 million demand, a WeChat chat on one of her phones shows pornographic images arriving and being sent back with Victim-1’s face grafted on, the complaint says.
    — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The filing follows a separate legal battle launched by Meloni in 2024 against a man accused of creating and posting deepfake pornographic images using her likeness.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of pornographic
Adjective
  • The colors are dour and muted, and the yearnings of the two elder Dashwood sisters—the self-abnegating Elinor (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and the passionate Marianne (Esmé Creed-Miles, a gimlet-eyed standout)—often play out in drearily candlelit rooms.
    — Hannah Jocelyn, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The Bulgari staff is notably passionate about this garden and volunteers there on a regular basis.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of passionate
Adjective
  • In Russia, soldiers die at the front by the hundreds of thousands while politically compliant billionaires accumulate obscene fortunes.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 22 Oct. 2026
  • At the next timeout, an announcement was made asking fans to refrain from obscene chants.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of obscene
Adjective
  • Then, of course, there’s the sandwich that started it all — the Sublime, with prosciutto, hot soppressata, burrata, fresh walnut pesto, spicy garlic aioli, sundried tomatoes and arugula.
    — Katelyn Umholtz, Kansas City Star, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Neither is the league’s hottest player, the record five-time MVP A’Ja Wilson, whose defending champion Las Vegas were swept in the semifinals by Golden State.
    — Don Riddell, CNN Money, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of hot
Adjective
  • In her smartly vulgar The Seasons (1957), which extends nearly 17 feet, Krasner returns to the subject of rebirth one year after Pollock’s death, depicting abundant forms resembling genitalia.
    — John Yau, ARTnews.com, 18 Oct. 2026
  • While Musgraves' comments received both praise and backlash, one country music legend took exception to the vulgar remarks.
    — Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of vulgar
Adjective
  • Robert also identifies the lustful subtext of Bret’s fixation on Robert and Susan together.
    — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 27 Aug. 2026
  • In March, the Miami Herald also joined Welty and the Croc Docs on a trip deep in the interior of the northern Everglades to track down lustful male pythons.
    — Ashley Miznazi, Miami Herald, 2 July 2026
Definition of lustful
Adjective
  • With American Family Field rocking, Ashby reared back and threw a nasty curve that Díaz tried to hold up on.
    — Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Of course, there has been some criticism of this plan, as France is experiencing some pretty nasty civil unrest at the moment, but the game will go ahead, with the Saints having been in the country for a few days already.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of nasty
Adjective
  • La Nueva Violencia is a smirking, libidinous play for the dance floor, picking up where the distorted guitars of the last record left off and channeling each new riff into sleazy post-punk and electroclash that stick to the body like sweaty velvet.
    — Richard Villegas, Rolling Stone, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The 10-minute score, with begins with a virtuosic timpani solo, is meant to evoke the libidinous atmosphere in Mexico City dance clubs in the 1980s.
    — Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026
Definition of libidinous

Browse Nearby Words

larvae
lascivious
lasciviously
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Lascivious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lascivious. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All