mercilessness C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities US /ˈmɜrsɪləsnəs/ UK /ˈmɜːsɪləsnəs/ See IPA manual Meanings 1 noun the quality of showing no mercy or compassion The mercilessness of the regime appalled the world. Thesaurus Synonyms 1 noun · the quality of showing no... ruthlessnesscrueltypitilessnessharshnessbrutalityremorselessness ↔ Opposites mercycompassionclemencyleniency Word family Related forms mercilessmercifulmercy Etymology AI details From merciless (mercy + -less) + -ness, the native English abstract-noun suffix from Old English -nes. merci xno -nes Old English View etymology graph -> Topics Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives External links Cambridge Dictionary Wiktionary Google Images # mercilessness **Type:** Word **Level:** C2+ **Part of speech:** noun **IPA (US):** /ˈmɜrsɪləsnəs/ **IPA (UK):** /ˈmɜːsɪləsnəs/ ## Meanings 1. the quality of showing no mercy or compassion ## Examples - The mercilessness of the regime appalled the world. ## Synonyms - ruthlessness - cruelty - pitilessness - harshness - brutality - remorselessness ## Antonyms - mercy - compassion - clemency - leniency ## Related Forms - merciless - merciful - mercy ## Roots and Affixes - Root: merci - Root: -nes ## Etymology From merciless (mercy + -less) + -ness, the native English abstract-noun suffix from Old English -nes. ## AI Etymology Mercilessness comes from merciless (mercy + -less) + -ness, the native English abstract-noun suffix from Old English -nes. The etymological trail includes Old French merci and Old English -nes. As a noun, mercilessness means the quality of showing no mercy or compassion. The same family is visible in related forms such as merciless, merciful, and mercy. Morphologically, the word is built from the elements named in its history, so the modern form preserves a visible compound, prefix, or suffix structure. ## Topics - Describing Qualities - Word Formation & Derivatives markdown