Definition of VINDICTIVE (original) (raw)

Examples of vindictive in a Sentence

Well, maybe actually waging vendettas is a bad idea, but to be known for your vindictiveness can be a great advantage, for then people will take care not to cross you. And maybe the surest way of acquiring a reputation for vindictiveness is actually to be vindictive. —David Papineau, New York Times Book Review, 11 May 1997 And though his [John Simon's] caustic wit can sometimes sound more personally vindictive than objectively critical, it allows him to plow through a lot of literary pretentiousness. —Andrea Barnet, New York Times Book Review, 19 Mar. 1989 The bear, seen in many aspects as humanlike, was subject to ambivalent attitudes: mainly, he was seen as a stand-in for benevolent supernaturals, but sometimes also as a dangerous and at times a vindictive and harmful one. —William W. Fitzhugh & Aron Crowell, Crossroads of Continents, 1988 A machine gun lashed at him from across the river. … In the darkness, it spat a vindictive white light like an acetylene torch, and its sound was terrifying. —Norman Mailer, The Naked and the Dead, 1948 In observing so long a silence I have been influenced much more by a vindictive purpose,—a purpose to punish you for your suspicion that I could possibly feel myself hurt or offended by any critical suggestion of yours … —William Cowper 26 Feb. 1791, in William Cowper's Letters, Edward Verrall Lucas, editor, 1924 It is not true that suffering ennobles the character; happiness does that sometimes, but suffering, for the most part, makes men petty and vindictive. —W. Somerset Maugham, The Moon and Sixpence, 1919

be careful not to annoy the vindictive old woman who lives down the street

Recent Examples on the Web

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And if one of the two people who could be president is both vindictive and susceptible to flattery — and in charge of appointing people who decide how to spend billions in federal contracts — why not butter him up a little bit? —Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 31 Oct. 2024 The Greek gods are famous for their uncontrollable lust, and amusingly petty, vindictive punishments inflicted on those unfortunate enough to insult them. —Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 14 Oct. 2024 Though whether that can be achieved with the participation of notoriously bitter and vindictive Hasina is a huge question. —Charlie Campbell, TIME, 3 Oct. 2024 As the presidential candidates head into the most heated phase of the election year so far, former President Donald Trump has made a distinctive shift in tone on his Truth Social profile, lashing out in increasingly vulgar, misogynistic and vindictive posts. —Ben Kamisar, NBC News, 30 Aug. 2024 See all Example Sentences for vindictive