relentlessness

noun

1
as in severity

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words
2
as in inexorability

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of relentlessness It’s centered on Bryant’s pillars of passion, obsession, relentlessness, resilience and fearlessness, core traits that Bowman used to persevere and conquer. — Daniel Flick, AJC.com, 27 Sep. 2026 He’s taken over team prayers, inspired his teammates with his relentlessness and dispensed wisdom that can only come from life experience. — Christian Babcock, Mercury News, 30 Aug. 2026 The relentlessness of this worldwide bond market rout is unnerving, pushing yields to decently attractive levels. — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2026 The traits that can help build great companies, like perfectionism, relentlessness and high tolerance for risk, are often the same traits that can predispose leaders to burnout, addiction and other mental health conditions. — Jan Gerber, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 Slight, lightning quick and with mesmerizing ballhanding, Iverson attacked defenses on the perimeter and in the paint with equal parts of fearlessness and relentlessness, guile and gumption. — Rob Peterson, New York Times, 26 July 2026 The same relentlessness that built Ackman’s reputation as a scourge of corporate excess—and, to critics, a bully spoiling for a fight—has increasingly spilled beyond balance sheets and boardrooms. — Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 20 July 2026 Errors of execution and discipline forced by the relentlessness of a French team stripped of many of its leading players meant New Zealand was unable to secure its win until the final minutes. — ABC News, 4 July 2026 The film has a propulsive rhythm to it, a relentlessness, even as Wilde and editors Yorgos Mavropsaridis and Anthony Boys know when to ease off the throttle and take it easy for a bit. — Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for relentlessness
  1. severity
  2. inexorability
  3. sternness
  4. likelihood
  5. vehemence
  6. gruffness
  7. hostility
  8. harshness
Noun
  • Meta classified the incident as Sev 1, its second-highest severity level.
    — Drew Naukam, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Areas at high risk of flooding and where few people are insured tend to be poorer, experts said, as are areas where FEMA's flood maps don't properly convey the severity of the risk or mandate that enough people buy coverage.
    — MICHAEL PHILLIS, Arkansas Online, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of severity
Noun
  • The events set in motion at the end of Season 2 do flip the boulder that starts to roll down the hill, and there is the sense of inexorability.
    — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 6 June 2026
  • These poems are plainspoken, emotionally direct, haunted by the past and the inexorability of time.
    — Vince Passaro, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Definition of inexorability
Noun
  • Saura had a large sense of the humor, which struck those who got to know him, belying the sternness of his public visage with his playful banter and frequent chuckle.
    — John Hopewell, Variety, 6 Mar. 2026
Definition of sternness
Noun
  • Suspensions and expulsions are associated with negative outcomes, including lower educational achievement, decreased likelihood of graduating high school and depression.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026
  • With both of these important data points in hand, the market is pricing in a 78% likelihood that the central bank will hold in October, compared with a 36% chance a week ago, according to the CME FedWatch Tool.
    — Alexa LoMonaco,Jeff Nash, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of likelihood
Noun
  • Less than a minute later, Kerr found a new level of vehemence after the Clippers’ John Collins wasn’t called for goaltending on a shot by Gary Payton II.
    — Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 6 Jan. 2026
  • Such vehemence looked awkward just a few hours later, when The Athletic broke the news that, on December 20, Barca would actually be visiting Villarreal’s Estadio de la Ceramica after all.
    — Dermot Corrigan, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
Definition of vehemence
Noun
  • Mackay and Turner are both excellent, two movie stars who seem totally game to be asked to move with real gruffness.
    — Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 17 June 2026
  • But then Popper smiled and the arrival of opening day momentarily mellowed his gruffness.
    — Andrew Carter, Chicago Tribune, 26 Mar. 2026
Definition of gruffness
Noun
  • Syrian families in Magdeburg are weighing whether to stay, as AfD campaign promises of faster deportations and tighter asylum limits deepen fears of hostility and exclusion.
    — Kirsten Grieshaber, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026
  • This online abuse and hostility experienced by trans people in the UK is part of a broader picture of the UK becoming a hostile climate for trans people.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of hostility
Noun
  • Pool/Tim Graham Picture Library/Getty Images Grief, loneliness, and the harshness of Eton’s education put Harry to the test.
    — Annabelle Dufraigne, Architectural Digest, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Reparations are about exercising a radical vision, thinking beyond the harshness of life, and knowing that something better is possible.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 July 2026
Definition of harshness

Browse Nearby Words

relentless
relentlessness
relents
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Relentlessness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/relentlessness. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All