brutalize

verb

bru·​tal·​ize ˈbrü-tᵊl-ˌīz How to pronounce brutalize (audio)
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 noun

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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Moxley, Claudio Castagnoli and Gabe Kidd brutalized Ospreay, targeting the neck which he was set to have surgery on. Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2025 With very few exceptions, low-rent buildings are run down, services are almost impossible to obtain, and except for the fact that New Yorkers have been so brutalized by their living conditions, such housing would be uninhabitable. Nicholas Pileggi, Curbed, 15 Aug. 2025 As her due date approached, she was brought to the infamous detention center Escuela de Mecánica de la Armada (Navy School of Mechanics), known as ESMA, where prisoners were brutalized. Sam Gillette, People.com, 8 Aug. 2025 Heads of foreign intelligence agencies recalled visiting his office and seeing a photograph of Nazi soldiers brutalizing Dagan’s grandfather on the wall. Yossi Melman, ProPublica, 7 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for brutalize

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of brutalize was circa 1704

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Cite this Entry

“Brutalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brutalize. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.

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