brutalize

verb

bru·​tal·​ize ˈbrü-tᵊl-ˌīz 

brutalized; brutalizing

transitive verb

1

: to make brutal, unfeeling, or inhuman

temperaments brutalized by poverty and disease

2

: to treat brutally

an accord not to brutalize prisoners of war

brutalization

ˌbrü-tᵊl-ə-ˈzā-shən 

noun

Synonyms

• animalize
• bestialize
• dehumanize

Examples of brutalize in a Sentence

a young man brutalized by the experience of war

The prisoners claimed to have been brutalized by their captors.

Recent Examples on the Web

On the page, Serafina is an archetypical Williams heroine — a woman who feels the world too deeply and is therefore brutalized by its harsh truths and petty cruelties (e.g. Maggie the Cat, Blanche DuBois, Amanda Wingfield). —Ew Staff, EW.com, 2 Mar. 2025

The Fed’s aggressive rate hikes brutalized any poor soul lugging a big balance. —Nerdwallet, Twin Cities, 27 Jan. 2025

Hamas has brutalized Gazans for years, cynically using civilians as shields by building operating bases in hospitals and elementary schools. —Yaakov Katz, Newsweek, 7 Feb. 2025

The characters’ demeanor is itself a comment on the numbness felt by people who’ve been brutalized in such surreal fashion for so long. —Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 25 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably borrowed from French brutaliser, going back to Middle French, from brutal brutal + -iser -ize

First Known Use

circa 1704, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for brutalize

• advertise
• aggrandize
• agonize
• alibis
• alkalies
• alkalis
• amortize
• amplifies
• analyse
• analyze
• anywise
• authorize