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ferocious

adjective
 
 
/fəˈrəʊ.ʃəs/ US  /-ˈroʊ-/

Definition

frightening and violent: a ferocious dog a ferocious battle She's got a ferocious (= very bad) temper. The president came in for some ferocious criticism.Violent or aggressiveUnkind, cruel and unfeelingTreating people or animals badly ferociously
 
 
/-li/ adverb
A female lion defends her young ferociously.Violent or aggressiveUnkind, cruel and unfeelingTreating people or animals badly
ferocity
 
 
/-ˈrɒs.ə.ti/ US  /-ˈrɑː.sə.t̬i/ noun [U] (also ferociousness)
The ferocity of the attack shocked a lot of people.Violent or aggressiveUnkind, cruel and unfeelingTreating people or animals badly
(Definition of ferocious adjective from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

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