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Definition of violent adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

violent

adjective
 
/ˈvaɪələnt/
 
/ˈvaɪələnt/
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  1. involving or caused by physical force that is intended to hurt or kill somebody
    • violent crime/criminals
    • violent protests/attacks/incidents
    • Students were involved in violent clashes with the police.
    • The crowd suddenly turned violent.
    • violent towards/to somebody Was he ever violent towards you?
    • violent acts/behaviour
    • He met with a violent death (= he was murdered, killed in a fight, etc.).
    • They don't allow their kids to play violent video games (= that show a lot of violence).
    • Their father was a violent man.
    Extra Examples
    • She started to get a bit violent.
    • The film is contrived, sentimental and gratuitously violent.
    • a range of graphically violent video games
    • dealing with potentially violent incidents
    • the question of whether humans are inherently violent
    • He later met a violent death on the battlefield.
    • Violent crime has increased by 15 per cent.
    Topics Crime and punishmentb1
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • become
    • get
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    preposition
    • to
    • towards/​toward
    See full entry
  2. showing or caused by very strong emotion
    • Toddlers can be prone to violent outbursts.
    • There was a violent reaction from the public.
    • The whole thing became the subject of violent controversy.
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • become
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  3. [usually before noun] very strong and sudden synonym intense, severe
    • I took a violent dislike to him.
    • a violent storm
    • a violent explosion
    • a violent headache
    • a violent change
    Extra Examples
    • The islands were hit by a violent cyclone.
    • Members of the lifeboat crew were presented with bravery awards for launching in violent seas.
    • an exceptionally violent storm
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • become
    adverb
    • extremely
    • fairly
    • very
    See full entry
  4. [usually before noun] (of a colour) extremely bright
    • Her dress was a violent pink.
  5. Word OriginMiddle English (in the sense ‘having a marked or powerful effect’): via Old French from Latin violent- ‘vehement, violent’.
See violent in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee violent in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English

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