English Dictionary

ATROCITY

Pronunciation (US): Play  (GB): Play

IPA (US): 

 Dictionary entry overview: What does atrocity mean? 

ATROCITY (noun)
  The noun ATROCITY has 2 senses:

1. the quality of being shockingly cruel and inhumaneplay

2. an act of atrocious crueltyplay

  Familiarity information: ATROCITY used as a noun is rare.


 Dictionary entry details 


ATROCITY (noun)


Sense 1

Meaning:

The quality of being shockingly cruel and inhumane

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

atrociousness; atrocity; barbarity; barbarousness; heinousness

Hypernyms ("atrocity" is a kind of...):

inhumaneness; inhumanity (the quality of lacking compassion or consideration for others)

Derivation:

atrocious (shockingly brutal or cruel)


Sense 2

Meaning:

An act of atrocious cruelty

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Synonyms:

atrocity; inhumanity

Hypernyms ("atrocity" is a kind of...):

cruelty; inhuman treatment (a cruel act; a deliberate infliction of pain and suffering)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "atrocity"):

barbarism; barbarity; brutality; savagery (a brutal barbarous savage act)

outrage (a wantonly cruel act)

enormity (an act of extreme wickedness)

Derivation:

atrocious (shockingly brutal or cruel)


 Context examples 


Does our education prepare us for such atrocities?

(Northanger Abbey, by Jane Austen)



 Learn English with... Proverbs 
"Two heads are better than one." (English proverb)

"Old age comes with friends." (Albanian proverb)

"Visit rarely, and you will be more loved." (Arabic proverb)

"He who wins the first hand, leaves with only his pants in hand." (Corsican proverb)



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