From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishruthlessruth‧less /ˈruːθləs/ ●○○ adjective 1 CRUELDETERMINEDso determined to get what you want that you do not care if you have to hurt other people in order to do it a ruthless dictator They have shown a ruthless disregard for basic human rights.► see thesaurus at determined2 DETERMINEDdetermined and firm when making unpleasant decisions He ran the company with ruthless efficiency. Throw away clothes you don’t wear – be ruthless. —ruthlessly adverb The uprising was ruthlessly suppressed. —ruthlessness noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
ruthless• But I was the one who was being ruthless.• Allowed to surface without any control, these can be dangerous and ruthless.• Father could be quite ruthless about getting his own way.• a ruthless and pitiless dictator• Ask a friend to observe your performance and to report to you on it with ruthless candour.• a ruthless criminal• And it was hard to reconcile his soft-spoken good manners with the ruthless determination of his business career.• the ruthless dictator, Joseph Stalin• You should be careful of Ian - he can be pretty ruthless if anyone gets in his way.• Its high sensitivity to the issue of advertising dollars has made the Times ruthless in their pursuit.• You could see the cold, ruthless look in her eyes.• The elaborate public displays of those royal families had always camouflaged the most ruthless power struggles.• President Banda's one-party government has a ruthless record, especially when dealing with political opponents.• On L. A. Law itself, ruthless Roz resigned from the firm.• These men are ruthless terrorists and will kill anyone who tries to stop them.Origin ruthless (1300-1400) ruth “pity” ((12-19 centuries)), from rue 