Inhuman
Inhuman adjective - Having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others.
Usage example: a classic sociological study showing just how inhuman an individual can become when given absolute power over another
Sadistic is a synonym for inhuman in cruel topic. In some cases you can use "Sadistic" instead the word "Inhuman" as an adjective or an adverb.
Sadistic
Sadistic adjective - Having or showing the desire to inflict severe pain and suffering on others.
Usage example: the troubled youth is being treated by a psychotherapist for his sadistic urges to hurt animals
Inhuman is a synonym for sadistic in cruel topic. You can use "Inhuman" instead the word "Sadistic" as an adjective or an adverb, if it concerns topics such as callous.
Mutual synonyms
Both words in one sentence
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Expect any complaints about cruel and inhuman punishment and sadistic prison staff to be ignored or just acknowledged with a "Well, maybe they shouldn't have broken the law".
Source: Acceptable Professional Targets -
Goeth's truly inhuman nature was actually underplayed, because Spielberg thought people would have a hard time believing someone could actually be that pointlessly sadistic.
Source: Film / Schindler's List - What we do know is that the Village's methods are inhuman, that their intention with said methods is sadistic at worst and pragmatic at best, and that this is a society that claims to care for every man and woman who lives under it.
Source: Analysis / The Prisoner (1967)
Cite this Source
Sadistic and Inhuman. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 07, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/inhuman/sadistic
Inhuman & Sadistic. N.p., 2016. Web. 07 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/inhuman/sadistic>.
Sadistic or Inhuman. 2016. Accessed August 07, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/inhuman/sadistic.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "inhuman" and "sadistic" have occurred on timeline