People fight all the time, but not everyone does it with fists. Some draw the line earlier and use only their words. However, don’t underestimate the damage they can inflict.
To show you that words can hurt just as much and, in many cases, even more than punches, we collected a list of the most brutal roasts we found online.
It’s always impressive to meet a person who seems to find the perfect phrase to express themselves, and when they do it so quickly and accurately, it leaves absolutely no chance for a comeback.
#1 Jar Of Expired Mayo
#2 Has Anyone Got Some Free Games Pleese?
According to psychologist Dr. Nigel Barber, in a verbal society like ours, physical aggression is used less often to settle status disputes, with those conflicts instead playing out through words. That’s why an insult can seem so powerful—it can be interpreted as an attempt to lower the target’s social status while raising that of the person delivering the insult.
“If that logic is correct, we can assume that insults are often motivated by anger surrounding issues of status insecurity,” Barber says. “Many insults are reactive: They are responses to real or imagined slights from others, such as a person accidentally cutting in front of someone else in a line.”
#3 Sweet Cake Alabama
#4 Me_irl
#5 On Cooking Methods
“We live in a period of extreme concern about how we are perceived by others; social psychologists are charting a steady increase in narcissism among college students. There is little consensus about why this is happening, but some scholars believe that the more children are measured on evaluative scales—aptitude tests, IQ scores, and GPA—the more sensitive they are to threats to their social rank,” Barber adds.
This narcissism trend is further amplified by social media, where people are constantly exposed to evaluation from others.
“Concern with how one is perceived creates social insecurity that may be relieved by lashing out at other … people … Social networks are replete with individuals who deliver stinging rebukes because they enjoy doing so and because they are mostly exempt from the reprisals that one might expect for real-world put-downs,” Barber explains.
#6 💪Captain Vietnam 🇻🇳🇺🇸
#7 On Self-Help Books
#8 He Wanted Someone To Backup His Purchase
#9 On Birthdays
So if the purpose of a put-down is to reduce someone else’s place in the (imaginary) hierarchy, it’s hardly surprising that insults often target a person’s position within it, whether in terms of ancestry, employment, or desirability as a partner.
That’s why, according to Barber, many insults refer to body parts or bring up shameful or unsuccessful romantic behavior.
And, of course, let’s not forget insults centered around other beauty standards, such as weight, height, baldness, skin conditions, and perceived flaws.
#10 Amazing Curls Tho
#11 On Plugs
#12 Strollers
#13 Comcast Needs To Get It Together Tbh
So, as hilarious as the roasts in these pictures are, we shouldn’t get too carried away. Barber says, “For those who enjoy distributing insults, the internet is a perfect environment, one that can offer a shield of anonymity and an absence of consequences. The larger question is whether the frequency of ill-motivated personal attacks will ride the wave of increasing narcissism or succumb to social controls?”
#14 Store-Bought Bottles Are Bred In Captivity; They Would Never Survive In The Wild
#15 They Aren’t Wrong
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#16 Straight Outta Wildlife
#17 Insurance
The psychologist says effective communities maintain solidarity by keeping direct insults to a minimum. That’s actually where traditions of politeness and respect come from; people behaved that way to avoid unnecessary anger, disputes, and violence while keeping things running smoothly.
Online communities, on the other hand, are becoming increasingly fueled by destructive elements: trolling, flaming, mis- and disinformation, and group attacks in which people violate basic codes of decency.
If these trends persist, Barber says social media should be regulated. However, this might lead to a counterintuitive effect, where online civility “scores” will only boost collective narcissism—and make us want to peck at our neighbors even more.
#18 This Got Me Wheezing
#19 That Was Brutal
#20 She Did Him Bad
#21 How Much Of Your Life?
#22 Didn’t See That Coming
#23 I Strive To Be This Creative
#24 Gonna Be A Bloodbath
#25 Power Rangers Insult 🤌
#26 Literally In His Name
#27 On Growing Hair
#28 Instagram Comments Are Brutal
#29 That’s One Way Of Putting It
#30 The Worst Kind Of Beans
#31 Something Something Football
#32 This Was Blunt Indeed
#33 Lolololol… I Think Even Cynthia And Ariana Would Laugh At This One
#34 This One Got A Chuckle Out Of Me Before The Stand-Up Even Started
#35 Common Gamer Fate
#36 On Warnings
#37 Bathrooms
#38 If He’s Single What Hope Is There For The Rest Of Us
#39 He Does Have A Point 🙂
#40 Tragedeigh – A Name That Has Been Deliberately Misspelled To Appear Unique
#41 On States Of Matter
#42 I’m Taken 💀
#43 On Waterbeds
#44 She Asked For It
#45 Rough Brains Unite
#46 Original Video Was Captioned “POV: You Cut 8 Inches Off Your Hair And Become A New Person”
#47 On T-Bone Steaks
#48 Fantastic Baristas And Where To Find Them
#49 AI Generated Hand
#50 Inbred 19th Century Shoe Factory Owner
#51 Baking
#52 On Someone’s Bad Singing
#53 On Galas
#54 On The Art Of Teaching
#55 Reddit Just Knew What To Name Op
#56 On Hairlines
#57 This Person Who Did Not Have The Patience For This Gym Bro
#58 You Fool. You Absolute Coward. I Will Take Your Bones
#59 Nothing Like Getting Your Fashion Compared To That Of A Poison-Type Pokémon Trainer
#60 Apparently Liquor Named Mallört Is One Of The Most Awful Liquors Existing, And The Reviews Of It Have Me Lmaoo😭💀
#61 Insulting And Somehow Also On Topic
#62 Hbo Max Downgrades
#63 These Times Are Hard On Everyone
#64 I Wouldn’t Know How To Recover After This
#65 Very Marsuperial, Good Job
#66 It’s Like I Wasn’t Even There 😎
#67 Stick Of Deodorant
#68 Inside Jokes
#69 And That’s A Bad Thing?
#70 Sent By A Friend
#71 Tree Planter And Dirty Hippie
#72 What’s Wrong With Box Wine?
#73 This One’s So Rare It’s Practically Blue
#74 Hairline Due For A Midlife Crisis
#75 Just A Catfish Getting Cooked
#76 On British Street Food
#77 Calm Down!
#78 Worth The Wait
#79 Bang & Blame
#80 All Sebastians Look The Same
#81 Stache vs. Stache
#82 He’s Got The Personality Of A Dial Tone
