ferocious

adjective

fe·​ro·​cious fə-ˈrō-shəs How to pronounce ferocious (audio)
1
: exhibiting or given to extreme fierceness and unrestrained violence and brutality
a ferocious predator
the ferocious butchery of women and children
2
: extremely intense
ferocious heat
The competition among the students was ferocious.
ferociously adverb
ferociousness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for ferocious

fierce, ferocious, barbarous, savage, cruel mean showing fury or malignity in looks or actions.

fierce applies to humans and animals that inspire terror because of their wild and menacing aspect or fury in attack.

fierce warriors

ferocious implies extreme fierceness and unrestrained violence and brutality.

a ferocious dog

barbarous implies a ferocity or mercilessness regarded as unworthy of civilized people.

barbarous treatment of prisoners

savage implies the absence of inhibitions restraining civilized people filled with rage, lust, or other violent passion.

a savage criminal

cruel implies indifference to suffering and even positive pleasure in inflicting it.

the cruel jokes of schoolboys

Examples of ferocious in a Sentence

A ferocious wind swept the beach. The competition among the students was ferocious.
Recent Examples on the Web Winds are likely to fall just short of the ferocious 60 to 70 mph that drove that fire, but fires will still be able to spread quickly in similarly dry conditions. Mary Gilbert, CNN, 13 Mar. 2024 Joined by a kleptomaniac fox (Awkwafina), a brusque pangolin (Ke Huy Quan) and a trio of ferocious little bunnies, Po sets out to defeat a sorcerer named the Chameleon (Viola Davis). Amy Nicholson, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2024 The fighting had become increasingly ferocious last month at the Zenith air-defense base a mile south of Avdiivka, where for years a company of Ukrainian soldiers had defended the southern approaches to the city. Oleksandr Chubko Lynsey Addario, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 The clan saw to it that another associate, Francisco Salgado Valladares—a pig-eyed man in charge of a ferocious group of Iguala police known as los Bélicos—was appointed vice-chief of the force. Alma Guillermoprieto, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Both have had holding issues, particularly Taylor, and that could be an issue against a ferocious San Francisco pass rush. Sam Farmer, Los Angeles Times, 8 Feb. 2024 At the peak of the storm, some locations — like Donner Pass in California and Lake Tahoe on the California-Nevada border — could experience snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour and ferocious wind gusts of 50 to 100 mph for 72 hours straight. Kathryn Prociv, NBC News, 29 Feb. 2024 Taking a contemporary view of this ferocious tale of power and loyalty, these infamous characters face the consequences of betrayal and the brutal nature of tyranny. Details: 7:30 p.m. Friday-Saturday, Cincinnati Shakespeare Co., 1195 Elm St., Over-the-Rhine. Luann Gibbs, The Enquirer, 28 Feb. 2024 In the first half, the Australian guard outran three BYU defenders and threw down a ferocious fastbreak jam. Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ferocious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin feroc-, ferox, literally, fierce looking, from ferus + -oc-, -ox (akin to Greek ōps eye) — more at eye

First Known Use

1646, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ferocious was in 1646

Dictionary Entries Near ferocious

Cite this Entry

“Ferocious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ferocious. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

ferocious

adjective
fe·​ro·​cious fə-ˈrō-shəs How to pronounce ferocious (audio)
1
2
: very great : extreme
ferocious heat
ferociously adverb
ferociousness noun
ferocity
fə-ˈräs-ət-ē
noun

More from Merriam-Webster on ferocious

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