remorseless
/ri'mɔ:slis/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
- Adjective:
- Lacking pity or compassion; merciless: Describes a person, action, or force that shows no regret, sorrow, or mercy. It implies a cruel, persistent, and unyielding nature.
- Persistent and relentless; not ceasing: Can describe something that continues without stopping or weakening.
Examples of Usage
- Adjective:
- The remorseless killer showed no emotion during the trial.
- The remorseless heat of the desert sun made travel difficult.
- She was remorseless in her pursuit of the truth, questioning everyone for hours.
Advanced Usage
- "remorseless logic": Used to describe an argument or process that is ruthlessly logical and admits no exceptions or emotional considerations.
- The remorseless logic of the algorithm eliminated any possibility of error.
- "remorseless advance": Often used to describe an unstoppable force, like time, an army, or a natural process.
- The remorseless advance of the glacier shaped the valley over millennia.
Variants and Related Words
- Remorselessly (adverb): In a remorseless manner.
- The factory continued remorselessly to pollute the river.
- Remorse (noun): Deep regret or guilt for a wrong committed. (This is the core concept from which "remorseless" is derived by adding the suffix "-less" meaning "without").
- He felt deep remorse for his actions.
Synonyms
- Ruthless: Having no pity; harsh or cruel.
- Merciless: Showing no mercy.
- Pitiless: Devoid of pity.
- Relentless: Unceasingly intense; harsh or inflexible.
- Unrelenting: Not yielding in strength, severity, or determination.
Antonyms
- Remorseful: Filled with remorse; penitent.
- Merciful: Showing or exercising mercy.
- Compassionate: Feeling or showing sympathy and concern for others.
Related Phrases and Idioms
- (As) remorseless as time/the tide: A simile emphasizing an unstoppable, unchanging, and inevitable quality.
- The deadlines came, as remorseless as the tide.
- A remorseless enemy: A common collocation describing an adversary who shows no mercy or willingness to stop.
- They faced a remorseless enemy on the battlefield.
Adjective
- without mercy or pity
- an act of ruthless ferocity
- a monster of remorseless cruelty