NASTINESS Synonyms: 184 Similar and Opposite Words

nastiness

noun

Definition of nastiness

as in malice

the desire to cause pain for the satisfaction of doing harm there was a natural nastiness about him that was evident from the time he was a small child

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in grossness

the quality or state of being obscene the nastiness of the graffiti required that the school remove it immediately

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in dustiness

the state or quality of being dirty the piles of rotting food in the kitchen were only one element in the apartment's general impression of appalling nastiness

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 nastiness Beatrice is not the only person reconsidering the nastiness of the proceedings; a series of small incidents leads Morgan to question Cathcarts’ cruelty. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026 Once the case is cracked, the third act shifts hard into monster movie mode, complete with plenty of practical blood, guts and werewolf nastiness. — William Earl, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026 The rest of us either quietly grumbled, or our comments were drowned in a sea of nastiness. — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026 When the Indiana Fever in 2024 drafted Caitlin Clark, the leading scorer in NCAA history—male or female—the league’s audience exploded, but so did the culture war nastiness. — The Week Us, TheWeek, 22 Aug. 2026 The nastiness of intellectual disputes, therefore, depends in part on how people frame their positions. — Andras Molnar, The Conversation, 13 Aug. 2026 At this point, there's reason to wonder when and if the WNBA can move past the nastiness and racial hysteria that have defined the past few seasons. — Bobby Burack Outkick, FOXNews.com, 28 July 2026 The bullpen ranks 30th in FanGraphs’ Stuff+ metric, which more or less measures the nastiness of a pitcher’s arsenal. — Spencer Nusbaum, New York Times, 24 June 2026 Just as surprising as all of the nastiness is the turn that happens mid-movie. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 17 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for nastiness

Noun

The Court finds Defendant could not have responded to these instances of 'actual malice' in the First Amended Complaint, as they were not framed as such.

— Tracy Wright, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 2026
In October, a Newton County grand jury indicted 43-year-old Taiesha Wilson on charges of malice murder, murder, concealing the death of another, identity theft, and more.

— Dan Raby, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of malice

Noun

But Paddy’s isn’t Sudz, and the Gang’s efforts to soft-pedal their antics to be more in line with those mainstream bars devolved into typical Sunny-style hostility and off-putting grossness.

— Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026
All your Dad has to do is fill it and drink—the microfilter membrane will do the rest by removing chlorine odors, dirt, bacteria, and any other grossness floating around in there.

— Francesca Krempa, Travel + Leisure, 11 June 2026

Definition of grossness

Noun

After weighing a few options, the team settled on scorpion antivenom, a costly treatment that can be difficult to produce, often involving injecting venom into horses.

— Robert Hart, The Verge, 22 Oct. 2026
Existing antivenoms are generally produced by immunizing animals, including horses, with venom and extracting antibodies from their blood.

— Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of venom

Noun

Lower courts upheld the ban, finding the veiled vulgarity of the phrase allows schools to ban it.

— CBS News, CBS News, 6 Oct. 2026
The diaries—particularly in Julian Sachs’s unexpurgated version, which captures Pavese’s alternating earnestness, archness, and pungent vulgarity—pose something of a problem.

— Max Norman, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026

Definition of vulgarity

Noun

Bleach is genuinely good at killing mildew and lifting the biological staining that makes white grout look gray.

— Daley Quinn, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2026
Dylan Gould, director of design at Cargo Workshop, says clients often have concerns about marble staining, etching, or not holding up well.

— Helena Madden, Martha Stewart, 6 Sep. 2026

Definition of staining

Noun

The rioters waved the Confederate flag, a clear symbol of racist hatred.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Oct. 2026
At least one person was killed and four people were injured in a shooting near Paris that may have been motivated by Islamophobic hatred, French officials say.

— Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of hatred

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nastily

nastiness

nasty

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“Nastiness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nastiness. Accessed 30 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of nastiness

noun

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