cruel
cru·el/ˈkɹuːəl/adjective, adverb, verb, noun
cruel is spelled C-R-U-E-L: 5 letters and 2 syllables (cru·el). It appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, cruel means “Intentionally causing or reveling in pain and suffering; merciless, heartless” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in cruel?
| Letters | 5: C-R-U-E-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: cru·el |
| In writing | 13 times per million words; the 5,878th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is cruel?
Cruel appears 13 times per million words in written English, the 5,878th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cruel?
- /ˈkɹuːəl/
- /kɹuːl/
- /kɹʊəl/
Cruel has 2 syllables, split cru·el in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-cruel.ogg, EN-AU_ck1_cruel.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with cruel?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as cruel.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: ulcer, lucre.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of cruel
- crueler comparative
- crueller comparative
- more cruel comparative
- cruelest superlative
- cruellest superlative
- most cruel superlative
- cruels present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- crueling US, participle, present
- cruelling UK, participle, present
- crueled US, participle, past
- cruelled UK, participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cruel mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Intentionally causing or reveling in pain and suffering; merciless, heartless.
The supervisor was very cruel to Josh, as he would always give Josh the hardest, most degrading work he could find.
- 2
Harsh; severe.
We're certainly having quite a cruel winter this year.
- 3
slangCool; awesome; neat.
adverb
- 1
nonstandardTo a great degree; terribly.
verb
- 1
AustraliaTo spoil or ruin (one's chance of success)
- 2
AustraliaTo violently provoke (a child) in the belief that this will make them more assertive.
noun
- 1
Alternative form of crewel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cruel in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense that intentionally causes pain and suffering:
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does cruel come from?
From Middle English cruel, borrowed from Old French cruel, from Latin crūdēlis (“hard, severe, cruel”), akin to crūdus (“raw, crude”); see crude.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).