fierce
[adjective]
Synonyms:
- wild, brutal, cruel, dangerous, ferocious, fiery, menacing, savage, vicious
- strong, furious, howling, inclement, powerful, raging, stormy, tempestuous, violent
- intense, cut-throat, keen, relentless, strong

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Antonyms: mild
Contrasted words: benign, benignant, gentle, kind, kindly, peaceful, subdued, submissive, tame, mild
Related Words: menacing, threatening, enraged, infuriated, maddened, aggressive, bellicose, belligerent, pugnacious, brutal, merciless, pitiless, ruthless, vicious, wild, excessive, extreme, inordinate, penetrating, piercing, superlative, supreme, transcendent

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English Thesaurus: violent, vicious, rough, brutal, savage, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

fierce /fɪəs $ fɪrs/ adjective
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: fiers, from Latin ferus 'wild']

1. done with a lot of energy and strong feelings, and sometimes violence:
fierce fighting in the city
fierce attack/opposition/criticism etc
The government’s policies came under fierce attack.
a fierce debate
fierce competition between the companies

2. a fierce person or animal is angry or ready to attack, and looks very frightening:
fierce guard dogs
She turned round, looking fierce.

3. fierce emotions are very strong and often angry:
These people take fierce pride in their independence.

4. fierce cold, heat, or weather is much colder, hotter etc than usual:
a fierce wind

5. informal looking very good and fashionable Synonym : fabulous

6. something fierce American English spoken more loudly, strongly etc than usual:
It was snowing something fierce.
—fiercely adverb
—fierceness noun [uncountable]

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

violent /ˈvaɪələnt/ using force to hurt or kill people – used about people, crimes etc. Also used about films or books that contain a lot of violence:
a violent man who couldn’t control his temper
the increase in violent crime
The film is too violent to be shown to children.
vicious /ˈvɪʃəs/ violent and dangerous, and seeming to enjoy hurting people for no reason:
a vicious attack on an unarmed man
We were surrounded by a gang of vicious thugs, armed with knives.
rough /rʌf/ using force or violence, but not causing serious injury:
Some of the boys were being a bit rough with the younger kids.
There were complaints about rough treatment by the police.
brutal /ˈbruːtl/ behaving in a way that is very cruel and violent, and showing no pity:
Idi Amin was a brutal dictator.
a particularly brutal murder
The prison guards were brutal and corrupt.
savage /ˈsævɪdʒ/ attacking people in a particularly cruel way – used about people and fighting, especially in news reports:
a savage killer
There was savage fighting in the capital Mogadishu.
bloody a bloody battle or war is very violent and a lot of people are killed or injured:
a bloody civil war
The Russians were engaged in a bloody battle against the German army.
ferocious /fəˈrəʊʃəs/ a ferocious attack or battle is extremely violent. Also used about animals that are likley to attack in a very violent way:
The two armies fought a ferocious battle.
a ferocious beast
It was the most ferocious attack I have ever seen.
fierce a fierce animal or person looks frightening and likely to attack people:
A fierce dog stood growling at the gate.
Bears are always fierce when they have young.
fierce bodyguards
bloodthirsty a bloodthirsty person enjoys watching violence. A bloodthirsty story contains a lot of violent scenes:
In Mexico, humans were sacrificed to bloodthirsty gods.
a bloodthirsty tale of revenge
gory showing or describing injuries, blood, death etc clearly and in detail:
a gory horror movie
The book was too gory for many readers.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲