ruthlessness

/ˈruθlɪsnɪs/

/ˈruθlɪsnɪs/

Ruthlessness is the quality of having no mercy or pity for other people. Your cruelty toward your younger sister might be described as ruthlessness.

Someone who's ruthless is uncaring, harsh, or even brutal towards others — and the characteristic of acting this way is ruthlessness. A football player's ruthlessness might be seen as a good thing in the context of a football game, while a dictator's ruthlessness is more likely to be seen as evil and vicious. In the fourteenth century, the word reuthe meant "pity or compassion," from the Old Norse root hryggð. To have ruthlessness, therefore, is to be without pity.

Definitions of ruthlessness

1. noun

   feelings of extreme heartlessness
   synonyms: cruelty, mercilessness, pitilessness

   type of:

   coldheartedness, hardheartedness, heartlessness

   an absence of concern for the welfare of others
2. noun

   mercilessness characterized by a lack of pity
   synonyms: pitilessness

   type of:

   mercilessness, unmercifulness

   inhumaneness evidenced by an unwillingness to be kind or forgiving