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

Then there’s Danaher, the worst of all, which has been brutalized by a lack of Chinese biotech offerings. —Jim Cramer, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2025

Brewers reliever Trevor Megill took a pretty harsh stance on the new style of bats that were used to brutalize Milwaukee's pitching. —Ron Estes, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Mar. 2025

The last time a Padres bullpen was brutalized like this over a five-game stretch was in 1977. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 May 2025

Here in Los Angeles, as in much of coastal California where the roads and highways are broken and brutalized due to overpopulation, a plush airbag suspension paired with this punchy hybrid powertrain would serve well, very well indeed. —Mark Ewing, Forbes, 22 Mar. 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