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What is a single word to describe someone who is quick to hate others?

With anger we can say quick-tempered, but what about quick in hating other people/easily hates others.

Hateful means full of hate, but doesn't really give the meaning of being quick to hate people.

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  • IMO, It's hard to imagine a quick switch from liking (or not knowing/caring) to hating without anger, fear or perhaps disgust being involved. Is it really possible to be quick-to-hate except by being prone to these fight/flight emotions? I assume quick-to-hate is different to the ambient level of hatred for everyone ever/never met.
    – user11931
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 5:50
  • Do you mean a person who also hates his fellows and family e.t.c. or some one who dislike/hate any new person he met with? Is it about a person who just dislike and avoid or who hate and try to hurt others?
    – Hafiz
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 8:53

10 Answers 10

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Misanthrope: defined by Merriam-Webster as "a person who hates or distrusts humankind." It may be too broad for your need, but if you mean to say that the person harbors an angry, resentful hatred for his/her fellow man/woman, this word might be what you're looking for.

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    +1 As the word popped to mind, I saw your answer. 100% correct term.
    – Engineer
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 20:43
  • +1 - I saw the question under "hot questions" on another SE site. I thought "misanthrope" and sure enough, you got it right.
    – JTP - Apologise to Monica
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 23:14
  • It does not necessarily mean anger and resentfulness. See some elaboration here, and note that Arthur Schopenhauer, according to this Wikipedia article, while misanthropic in many of his ideas (such as his anti-natalistic views), thought that ethical treatment of fellow human is still a way to go. If humanity is a “mistake”, it does not follow one must hate it.
    – theUg
    Commented Feb 1, 2013 at 16:46
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Malevolent (or malicious, which is close) may do it: wishing evil or harm to another or others; showing ill will; ill-disposed; malicious

Ill-disposed itself would also be good. Someone who is ill-disposed towards others has a tendency to dislike them.

Hostile and antagonistic can be used to describe people who act aggressively, treating others as if they are (potential) enemies.

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    I'm not sure malevolent fits, but I like all your other suggestions, so +1 from me.
    – TRiG
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 16:01
  • Fair enough, though ill-disposed is a synonym granted it by dictionary.com, not just by me.
    – user13141
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 18:05
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    It has connotations to me of evilness, more than hostility. I suppose the two are related.
    – TRiG
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 19:36
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A person that hates is a hater.

Recently I've noticed that this word has taken on an implication that the hater is predisposed to it.

Haters gonna hate

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    I think it's generally safe to assume that if someone's asking for a word here, they want standard English, not trashy slang.
    – Ernest Friedman-Hill
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 15:22
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    @ErnestFriedman-Hill: I don’t think it’s fair to call “hater” an example of trashy slang. It’s hardly even slang: -er is one of the most productive suffixes in English, and “hater” is quite literally “one who hates”.
    – Jon Purdy
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 15:25
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    Actually, that word sense is consistent with current usage in the American dialect. It is used quite frequently among educated people and will likely be included in a regular dictionary very shortly. However I agree it would not yet be appropriate if one wanted to set an academic tone.
    – sventechie
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 16:01
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    My judgment is that 'haters' has entered the casual mainstream - you can use it in the office, but not in your academic publication.
    – Marcin
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 9:02
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    I upvoted this because I think it's a useful, increasingly mainstream term, and because I love the bemonocled tone of your paraphrasing of the statement "hater's gon' hate." Good show! :) Hater's gon' hate
    – Stop Slandering Monica Cellio
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 13:55
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Bigot, "a prejudiced person who is intolerant of any opinions differing from their own or intolerant of people [who are different]".

Generally someone who hates quickly does so based on one of the factors of bigotry.

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    I'm not sure if this fits quite exactly. I can imagine someone who is quick to hate others that even hold the same opinions or worldview.
    – DuckMaestro
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 18:47
  • @DuckMaestso The question doesn't say why the person hates the others, just that they hate quickly. A bigot may hate quickly as soon as they spot the other doesn't share their worldview.
    – Hugo
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 22:53
  • @Hugo, fair point, but "The question doesn't say why the person hates the others" is precisely why I think this answer is too narrow.
    – DuckMaestro
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 2:20
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Hows about judgemental, while it means quick to judge in general rather than quick to hate specifically it does tend to be used more in a negative conotation.

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    Or judgmental, for purists :L
    – Daniel
    Commented Oct 16, 2011 at 0:33
  • it actually started as judgmental but my browser's dictionary preferred judgemental, might be a US/UK thing? as a brit working in an american company I am so confused >.<
    – jk.
    Commented Oct 16, 2011 at 2:09
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Hate-hasty, or just hatesty for short

(ok I just made that up, but no-one criticises Shakespere for doing that - it's not fair)

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    Neologismicity is an important tradition in English writing, and is actually very common in most of the world's languages. New words tend to take some time to establish themselves, and many fade away after a short while.
    – sventechie
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 15:58
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    Is 'Neologismicity' a real word :-)
    – user7128
    Commented Oct 14, 2011 at 16:05
  • @JackDouglas, it's ok for Shakespeare to invent new words because he wrote a lot of appealing plays.
    – zzzzBov
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 2:55
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    Actually, we don't know how many words Shakespeare invented - he wrote down a lot of words at a time when not that many people were writing things that have been preserved to this day.
    – Marcin
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 9:03
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Unforgiving would apply to someone who can't overlook mistakes and easily judges negatively.

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How about intolerant ? suggests a lack of patience and an unwillingness to accept others.

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The word I would use is inflammable, someone who is easily "inflamed" against others.

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A prejudiced person has an "irrational suspicion or hatred of a particular group, race, or religion."

However, W.C. Fields joked:

I am free of all prejudice. I hate everyone equally.

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  • I would rather say judgmental than prejudiced, but the question seems to be for a one-word answer (i.e. noun)...
    – Andrew Vit
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 4:21
  • @Andrew If anything, it seems to be asking for one describing word, an adjective: "single word to describe..." "With anger we can say quick-tempered..." "Hateful..."
    – Hugo
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 5:19
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    Good point, yes the examples in the question are adjectives too.
    – Andrew Vit
    Commented Oct 15, 2011 at 5:32

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