Vindictive

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /vɪnˈdɪk.tɪv/

Definitions

1. Characterized by a strong desire for revenge or a tendency to seek retribution against those perceived as causing harm
2. Marked by an intense urge to retaliate against those believed to have wronged
3. exhibiting a persistent inclination towards enacting vengeance on others for real or imagined slights

Etymology: "Vindictive" carries the Latin "vindicta," meaning "vengeance" or "punishment," and the English word is that noun with the adjective-forming suffix "-ive" attached. The Latin root "vindicta" itself belongs to a family of words about claiming or avenging, and its close relative "vindicare" meant "to claim" or "to lay legal claim to," which is how the notion of punishing a wrong and asserting a right came to share one stem. A close cousin sits in the same family without the same dark edge. Latin "vindicativus" gave English "vindicative," a term for things that vindicate or lay claim, while "vindictive" kept the sense of revenge. The two forms branch from the same stem but drifted apart in meaning, so one word now describes a vengeful temperament and the other describes a justifying act.

Synonyms: vengeful, spiteful

Antonyms: forgiving, benevolent