bestial

adjective

bes·tial ˈbes-chəl How to pronounce bestial (audio)

ˈbesh-,

ˈbēs-,

ˈbēsh-

: of or relating to beasts

grotesque combinations of human and bestial forms

: resembling a beast

a bestial shape

: lacking intelligence or reason

… the bestial man has no sense of right and wrong …

J. E. Hankins

: marked by base (see base entry 3 sense 1a) or inhuman instincts or desires : brutal

bestial violence

… a scene of bestial intoxication …

Herman Melville

bestialize

ˈbes-chə-ˌlīz How to pronounce bestial (audio)

ˈbesh-

ˈbēs-

ˈbēsh-

transitive verb

bestially

ˈbes-chə-lē How to pronounce bestial (audio)

ˈbesh-

ˈbēs-

ˈbēsh-

adverb

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Frank himself could easily be a habitué of an old Max Fleischer cartoon—a cousin to Bimbo the Dog, perhaps—with his rubbery black limbs, white gloves and shoes, and cute, bestial, species-nonspecific features.

Sam Thielman, The New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2022 Some singers get up in front of audiences and attack sets with bestial ferocity before partying all night long, but that approach has an expiration date.

Nathan Grayson, Washington Post, 9 Aug. 2022 Our reduced olfactory apparatus was the detritus of a bestial and benighted past, and an allegory of our enlightenment.

Scott Sayare, Harper's Magazine, 23 Nov. 2021 On the Foo Fighters’ second album, The Colour and the Shape, Grohl ended up rerecording songs with his own bestial drumming in place of Goldsmith’s, and suddenly tracks that hadn’t been working sounded like instant modern-rock classics.

Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2021 The streaks provide proof of our mundane bestial reality—our hormones, our lunch, our particular whorls and spirals.

Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker, 1 Sep. 2021 Such epiphanies, though bookended in Wright's novel between the bestial horrors of its first section and the abject bleakness of its third, are what give the novel its lasting glow.

Gene Seymour, CNN, 26 May 2021 Lincoln’s opponents tarred him with racist and bestial characterizations.

Calvin Schermerhorn, The Conversation, 6 Aug. 2020 Abolitionists claimed that the eloquence of slaves and Africans proved their equal humanity, but most Europeans had long taken for granted that black utterances were inherently inferior, even bestial.

Fara Dabhoiwala, The New York Review of Books, 3 Aug. 2020 See More

bestial

adjective

as in brute

having or showing the nature and appetites of a lower animal an apocalyptic sci-fi classic in which a lone drifter fights to avoid the bestial existence lived by the mass of survivors

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

brute
brutal
animalistic
feral
animal
brutish
subhuman
savage
beastly
cruel
ferine
sensual
vicious
swinish
physical
crass
barbarous
carnal
bodily
sadistic
corporal
corporeal
barbaric
coarse
rude
inhumane
heartless
vulgar
fleshly
uncouth
wanton
gross
uncultured
crude
unrefined
uncultivated
ill-bred
lowbred

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

noble
great
sublime
chivalrous
high
spiritual
lofty
gallant
magnanimous
angelic
angelical
elevated
benevolent
lordly
benignant
kind
beneficent
compassionate
greathearted
high-minded
tenderhearted
softhearted
kindhearted
kindly
genteel
refined
polished
good-hearted
cultured
cultivated
well-bred

Synonym Chooser

Some common synonyms of bestial are brutal, brutish, and feral. While all these words mean "characteristic of an animal in nature, action, or instinct," bestial suggests a state of degradation unworthy of humans and fit only for beasts.

bestial depravity

The words brutal and bestial can be used in similar contexts, but brutal applies to people, their acts, or their words and suggests a lack of intelligence, feeling, or humanity.

a senseless and brutal war

While the synonyms brutish and bestial are close in meaning, brutish stresses likeness to an animal in low intelligence, in base appetites, and in behavior based on instinct.

brutish stupidity

While in some cases nearly identical to bestial, feral suggests the savagery or ferocity of wild animals.

the struggle to survive unleashed their feral impulses

单词	bestial
释义	bestial adjective bes·tial ˈbes-chəl ˈbesh-, ˈbēs-, ˈbēsh- 1 a : of or relating to beasts grotesque combinations of human and bestial forms b : resembling a beast a bestial shape 2 a : lacking intelligence or reason … the bestial man has no sense of right and wrong … J. E. Hankins b : marked by base (see base entry 3 sense 1a) or inhuman instincts or desires : brutal bestial violence … a scene of bestial intoxication … Herman Melville bestialize ˈbes-chə-ˌlīz ˈbesh- ˈbēs- ˈbēsh- transitive verb bestially ˈbes-chə-lē ˈbesh- ˈbēs- ˈbēsh- adverb Synonyms animalistic beastly brutal brute brutish feral ferine subhuman swinish See all Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Recent Examples on the Web Frank himself could easily be a habitué of an old Max Fleischer cartoon—a cousin to Bimbo the Dog, perhaps—with his rubbery black limbs, white gloves and shoes, and cute, bestial, species-nonspecific features. Sam Thielman, The New Yorker, 9 Aug. 2022 Some singers get up in front of audiences and attack sets with bestial ferocity before partying all night long, but that approach has an expiration date. Nathan Grayson, Washington Post, 9 Aug. 2022 Our reduced olfactory apparatus was the detritus of a bestial and benighted past, and an allegory of our enlightenment. Scott Sayare, Harper's Magazine, 23 Nov. 2021 On the Foo Fighters’ second album, The Colour and the Shape, Grohl ended up rerecording songs with his own bestial drumming in place of Goldsmith’s, and suddenly tracks that hadn’t been working sounded like instant modern-rock classics. Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2021 The streaks provide proof of our mundane bestial reality—our hormones, our lunch, our particular whorls and spirals. Jia Tolentino, The New Yorker, 1 Sep. 2021 Such epiphanies, though bookended in Wright's novel between the bestial horrors of its first section and the abject bleakness of its third, are what give the novel its lasting glow. Gene Seymour, CNN, 26 May 2021 Lincoln’s opponents tarred him with racist and bestial characterizations. Calvin Schermerhorn, The Conversation, 6 Aug. 2020 Abolitionists claimed that the eloquence of slaves and Africans proved their equal humanity, but most Europeans had long taken for granted that black utterances were inherently inferior, even bestial. Fara Dabhoiwala, The New York Review of Books, 3 Aug. 2020 See More Word History Etymology Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin bestialis, from bestia beast First Known Use 14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a bestial adjective as in brute having or showing the nature and appetites of a lower animal an apocalyptic sci-fi classic in which a lone drifter fights to avoid the bestial existence lived by the mass of survivors Synonyms & Similar Words Relevance brute brutal animalistic feral animal brutish subhuman savage beastly cruel ferine sensual vicious swinish physical crass barbarous carnal bodily sadistic corporal corporeal barbaric coarse rude inhumane heartless vulgar fleshly uncouth wanton gross uncultured crude unrefined uncultivated ill-bred lowbred Antonyms & Near Antonyms noble great sublime chivalrous high spiritual lofty gallant magnanimous angelic angelical elevated benevolent lordly benignant kind beneficent compassionate greathearted high-minded tenderhearted softhearted kindhearted kindly genteel refined polished good-hearted cultured cultivated well-bred See More Synonym Chooser Some common synonyms of bestial are brutal, brutish, and feral. While all these words mean "characteristic of an animal in nature, action, or instinct," bestial suggests a state of degradation unworthy of humans and fit only for beasts. bestial depravity The words brutal and bestial can be used in similar contexts, but brutal applies to people, their acts, or their words and suggests a lack of intelligence, feeling, or humanity. a senseless and brutal war While the synonyms brutish and bestial are close in meaning, brutish stresses likeness to an animal in low intelligence, in base appetites, and in behavior based on instinct. brutish stupidity While in some cases nearly identical to bestial, feral suggests the savagery or ferocity of wild animals. the struggle to survive unleashed their feral impulses
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bestial

adjective

Synonyms

Example Sentences

Word History

adjective

Synonym Chooser