SLASH-AND-BURN Synonyms: 113 Similar and Opposite Words

slash-and-burn

adjective

ˈslash-ən(d)-ˈbərn

Definition of slash-and-burn

as in ruthless

having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings under his slash-and-burn management ethic, even longtime employees were summarily downsized for the sake of corporate competitiveness

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Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of slash-and-burn That stark reality forced both sides to wage slash-and-burn propaganda campaigns designed to sow doubt and disinformation among their enemies. — Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025 The Ukrainian experience here points to a Russian slash-and-burn policy. — Scott Peterson, Christian Science Monitor, 1 Oct. 2025 Here and there, a plume of smoke rose up from a field; slash-and-burn farming, locally known as tavy, is still practiced here. — Chris Schalkx, Vogue, 30 Sep. 2025 The slash-and-burn approach to funding academic research counters that goal. — Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 20 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for slash-and-burn

Recent Examples of Synonyms for slash-and-burn

Adjective

The rest would kill her just for being her mother’s daughter—like Xaden Riorson, the most powerful and ruthless wingleader in the Riders Quadrant.

— Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 15 Oct. 2026
Facinelli plays the Boss, a ruthless figure whose cash ends up in the pool hustler’s hands, and intends to get it back, one way or another.

— Zac Ntim, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of ruthless

Adjective

The book’s humor is sharp and merciless, akin to that of a standup comedy show, and yet the things described are far from funny.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
Cora, the granddaughter of a woman kidnapped from West Africa and sold into slavery, flees her captor’s plantation, plunging her into the book’s alternate steampunk reality where she is pursued by the merciless slave catcher Ridgeway.

— David Faris, TheWeek, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of merciless

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slash

slash-and-burn

slashed

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“Slash-and-burn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slash-and-burn. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of slash-and-burn

adjective

Example Sentences

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