barbarous vs cruel

barbarous and cruel both are adjectives.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
barbarous	No	Yes	No	No
cruel	No	Yes	No	No

As adjectives, barbarous and cruel are synonyms defined as:

barbarous and cruel: (of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering

Other synonyms of barbarous include brutal, fell, roughshod, savage, vicious.

barbarous (adjective)	cruel (adjective)
(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering	(of persons or their actions) able or disposed to inflict pain or suffering
primitive in customs and culture