cruelly
cru·el·ly/ˈkɹuːəli/adverb
cruelly is spelled C-R-U-E-L-L-Y: 7 letters and 3 syllables (cru·el·ly). It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, cruelly means “In a cruel manner; with cruelty” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in cruelly?
| Letters | 7: C-R-U-E-L-L-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: cru·el·ly |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 30,789th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
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).
How common is cruelly?
Cruelly appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 30,789th 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 cruelly?
- /ˈkɹuːəli/
- /ˈkɹuːli/
Cruelly has 3 syllables, split cru·el·ly in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-cruelly.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of cruelly
- more cruelly comparative
- most cruelly superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cruelly mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adverb
- 1
In a cruel manner; with cruelty.
- 2
rareTo a degree that is cruel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Cruelly in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense in a cruel manner:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | cruellement |
| German | grausam |
| Portuguese | cruelmente |
| Spanish | sangrientamente, cruelmente |
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 cruelly come from?
From Middle English cruelly; equivalent to cruel + -ly.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).