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Origin and history of cruelty

cruelty(n.)

c. 1200, cruelte, "indifference to, or pleasure taken in, the distress or suffering of any sentient being," from Old French crualté (12c., Modern French cruauté), from Latin crudelitatem (nominative crudelitas) "cruelty," from crudelis "rude, unfeeling; cruel, hard-hearted," related to crudus "rough, raw, bloody" (see crude). Meaning "a cruel act" is from late 14c.

also from c. 1200

Entries linking to cruelty

crude(adj.)

late 14c., "in a raw or unprepared state" (of coarse bread or untanned hide), from Latin crudus "rough; not cooked, raw, bloody," from PIE *krue-do-, from PIE root *kreue- "raw flesh." Meaning "lacking grace, socially unrefined" is attested by 1640s. Related: Crudely; crudeness. Crude oil, which is in its natural state and unrefined, is from 1865.

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    inhumanity
    "barbarous cruelty," late 15c., from French inhumanité (14c.) or directly from Latin inhumanitatem (nominative inhumanitas...
    floricide
    [S]urely there is cruelty and gross selfishness in cutting down for our own fleeting gratification that which would have...
    stepmother
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    rigor
    late 14c., rigour, "harshness, severity in dealing with persons; force; cruelty," from Old French rigor "strength, hardness...
    Dionysian
    cases a reference to historical men named Dionysius, such as the two tyrants of that name of Syracuse, both notorious for cruelty...
    scofflaw
    did not stick, such as pitilacker (1926), winning entry in a contest by the Pennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty...
    Simon
    Earlier he had been the subject of a popular chapbook, "Simple Simon's Misfortunes: Or His Wife Margery's Outrageous Cruelty...
    atrocity
    1530s, "enormous wickedness," from French atrocité or directly from Latin atrocitatem (nominative atrocitas) "cruelty, fierceness, harshness," noun of quality from atrox "fierce, cruel, frightful," from PIE *atro-ek-, from root *ater- "fire" + root *okw- "to see;" thus "of fiery
    abuse
    early 15c., "to misuse, misapply" (power, money, etc.), from Old French abuser "deceive, abuse, misuse" (14c.), from Vulgar Latin *abusare, from Latin abusus "an abusing; a using up," past participle of abuti "use up, consume," also "to misuse, abuse, misapply, outrage," from ab
    malevolence
    "the character of being ill-disposed toward another or others; ill-will, malice, personal hatred," mid-15c., from Old French malevolence and directly from Latin malevolentia "ill-will, dislike, hatred," from malevolentem (nominative malevolens) "ill-disposed, wishing ill, spitefu

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