SPITEFULNESS

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does spitefulness mean? 

• SPITEFULNESS (noun)
  The noun SPITEFULNESS has 2 senses:

1. feeling a need to see others suffer

2. malevolence by virtue of being malicious or spiteful or nasty

  Familiarity information: SPITEFULNESS used as a noun is rare.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SPITEFULNESS (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Feeling a need to see others suffer

Classified under:

Nouns denoting feelings and emotions

Synonyms:

malice; maliciousness; spite; spitefulness; venom

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

malevolence; malignity (wishing evil to others)

Derivation:

spiteful (showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt; motivated by spite)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Malevolence by virtue of being malicious or spiteful or nasty

Classified under:

Nouns denoting attributes of people and objects

Synonyms:

bitchiness; cattiness; nastiness; spite; spitefulness

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

malevolence; malevolency; malice (the quality of threatening evil)

Derivation:

spiteful (showing malicious ill will and a desire to hurt; motivated by spite)

 Context examples 

Mothers who suffered from stress and anxiety in the prenatal period were more likely to see their child display behavioural problems such as temper tantrums, restlessness and spitefulness.

(Prenatal parental stress linked to behaviour problems in toddlers, University of Cambridge)