English Explanatory Dictionary

barbarous

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Not classical or pure.
  2. Uncivilized, uncultured.
  3. Mercilessly or impudently violent or cruel, savage.
  4. Like a barbarian, especially in sound; noisy, dissonant.

Pronunciation

/ˈbɑː(ɹ)bəɹəs/ en-us-barbarous.ogg

Word forms

barbarous more barbarous most barbarous barbarouse

Etymology

Late Middle English, from Latin barbarus (“foreigner, savage”), from Ancient Greek βάρβαρος (bárbaros, “foreign, strange”).

Synonyms

barbaric savage animalistic barbarian barbarious barbarous brutal brutish Gothic Gothlike grim heathen heathenish heathenly heathenous incivil pagan tenebrose truculent uncivil uncivilized uncouth uncultivated uncultured uplandish wolfish ruthless bowelless compassionless cruel demonic despiteful diabolic diabolical fell incessive inclement inhuman inhumane malicious merciless nasty nonhumane pitiless remorseless rotten sadistic spiteful unbenevolent unbenign unkind unmerciful unpitiful unpitying

Related words

barbarian barbaric

Derived words

barbarously barbarousness hyperbarbarous nonbarbarous semibarbarous unbarbarous
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