hateful

[ heyt-fuhl ]

adjective

1. arousing hate or deserving to be hated:

   the hateful oppression of dictators.

   Synonyms: loathsome, invidious, repugnant, abhorrent, execrable, abominable

   Antonyms: commendable, praiseworthy, agreeable, likable

2. unpleasant; dislikable; distasteful:

   She found her domestic chores hateful.

3. full of or expressing hate malignant; malevolent:

   a hateful denunciatory speech.

hateful

/ ˈheɪtfʊl /

adjective

1. causing or deserving hate; loathsome; detestable
2. full of or showing hate

Derived Forms

• ˈhatefulness, noun
• ˈhatefully, adverb

Other Words From

• hateful·ly adverb
• hateful·ness noun
• un·hateful adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of hateful¹

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; hate, -ful

Synonym Study

Hateful, obnoxious, odious, offensive refer to something that causes strong dislike or annoyance. Hateful implies actually causing hatred or extremely strong dislike: The sight of him is hateful to me. Obnoxious emphasizes causing annoyance or discomfort by objectionable qualities: His persistence made him seem obnoxious. His piggish manners made him obnoxious to his companions. Odious emphasizes the disagreeable or displeasing: an odious little man; odious servility. Offensive emphasizes the distaste and resentment caused by something that may be either displeasing or insulting: an offensive odor, remark.

Example Sentences

That flash point foretells an America becoming more polarized the hotter things get, more sharply divided between its rural and urban communities and more hateful and more dangerous.

From Salon

Trump was saying, in effect: The hate you saw was really love, and if you can’t see that, you’re the hateful one.

From Salon

He's always been hateful and erratic, and it's clearly getting worse as he approaches 80 years old.

From Salon

While it may feel better to think of Trump supporters as misinformed rather than hateful, the downside is that an un-informed public cannot sustain a freely elected democracy.

From Salon

Gov. Robinson's penchant for hateful speech and rhetoric, saying that he was unfit to lead the state.

From Salon

Related Words

• abhorrent
• bitter
• despicable
• disgusting
• heinous
• odious
• ornery
• repulsive
• spiteful
• vicious
• vile