vindictive
Definitions
Having or showing a strong, unforgiving desire for revenge; spiteful.
报复心强的；怀恨在心的；存心要让人难受的。
Root Breakdown
Root-derivedvindict (from Latin vindicta, 'vengeance') + -ive (tending to) = 'tending toward vengeance.' This is the revenge half of the root: not the courtroom that clears a name, but the impulse to punish whoever wronged you. A vindictive person can't let a grudge go and actively wants the other side to suffer.
Root vindic still carries 6 more wordsWhy It Means This
Vindictive is the dark twin of vindicate: same root, opposite feeling. Vindicate clears a wrong; vindictive wants to repay one with suffering. The key isn't anger but intent — a vindictive act is designed to hurt, long after a normal person would have let it go.
Common Collocations
- 1.vindictive streak报复成性的一面
- 2.petty and vindictive小气又记仇
- 3.vindictive behavior报复性行为
- 4.spiteful and vindictive怀恨又恶毒
Example Sentences
- 1.
He was so vindictive that he tried to ruin her career out of spite.
- 2.
Don't be vindictive — let it go and move on.
- 3.
The court rejected the claim as a vindictive attempt to punish a former partner.
Synonym Comparison
- vindictive — bent on revenge; wants the other side to suffer
- spiteful — wants to hurt out of meanness, even without a prior wrong
- vengeful — actively seeking to repay a specific wrong (close to vindictive, more poetic)
- resentful — harbors bitterness, but not necessarily acting on it
- malicious — intends harm in general, not tied to payback