as in insulting
marked by harsh insulting language
never one to believe that honorable people can disagree honorably, he invariably launches abusive attacks against anyone who dares to challenge him
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of abusive
All of the players bring their A-game, but the stunner here is Toni Collette, whose open-wound performance as a mother who is both abused and abusive would have easily netted a best actress Oscar nomination from an awards-giving body that wasn’t notoriously, reliably biased against genre movies.
—
Jason Bailey, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
After leaving an abusive relationship, Simmons and her two sons became homeless.
—Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2025
The allegations came after the #MeToo movement rocked Hollywood and many people spoke up after abusive workplace conditions were re-evaluated and condemned.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025
Nickelodeon cut ties with Schneider, 59, in March 2018 after reports of his alleged abusive behavior on set.
—Gabrielle Rockson, People.com, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abusive
Jason Bailey, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025
After leaving an abusive relationship, Simmons and her two sons became homeless.
—Kamal Morgan, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 28 Mar. 2025
The allegations came after the #MeToo movement rocked Hollywood and many people spoke up after abusive workplace conditions were re-evaluated and condemned.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025
Nickelodeon cut ties with Schneider, 59, in March 2018 after reports of his alleged abusive behavior on set.
—Gabrielle Rockson, People.com, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for abusive
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abusive
Adjective
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Now, however, Memrise charges $59.99 per month, which is insulting.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
16 Apr. 2025
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To compare the incident to a possible leak of a football game plan is insulting to the U.S. military members who secure and safeguard our personal freedom each and every day.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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As a woman, I am appalled by Michael Tanzi's outrageous actions.—
Raja Krishnamoorthi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Apr. 2025
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Several major automakers like Audi and Volkswagen have paused shipments to the United States to avoid paying outrageous import tariffs.—
Charles Singh,
USA Today,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Deputies found and arrested Betancourt, who was sentenced March 21 to six years and eight months in state prison for felony child abuse causing injury, felony domestic violence, witness intimidation, and possession of obscene matter depicting persons under age 18 engaged in lewd conduct.—
Bay City News Service,
Mercury News,
13 Apr. 2025
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Lovable, charming and generous, yet temperamental, arrogant and obscene.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
11 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Even children and adolescents express more willingness to shun and punish moral transgressors than people who do something personally obnoxious or offensive but not immoral.—
Jen Cole Wright,
The Conversation,
14 Apr. 2025
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Star left tackle Terron Armstead announced his retirement this offseason, making the offensive line an even bigger need for the team.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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These emails might include malicious links designed to install malware or steal login information.—
Kurt Knutsson, CyberGuy Report,
FOXNews.com,
16 Apr. 2025
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Time to update: Apple has discovered hackers exploiting an iOS bug via malicious media files.—
Michael Kan,
PC Magazine,
16 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Trump’s vituperative persona, his enmity toward multilateralism, and his extreme policy agenda could easily sink the United States’ prospects for meaningful leadership of the G-20.—
Leslie Vinjamuri,
Foreign Affairs,
15 Nov. 2024
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Unlike Rhoades, a vituperative colossus, however, Williams brings a steely determination and a Joe Friday, just-the-facts mien to his lawyering in the court of public opinion.—
Cynthia Littleton,
Variety,
4 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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One upshot was Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which to this day insulates social media from legal liability for the content — however incendiary or scurrilous — that users post.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2025
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Facts won’t deter Republicans on this point, however, for the same reason that Trump and his running mate, J. D. Vance, keep repeating their scurrilous lies about Haitian immigrants eating the pets of Ohio: white anxiety about a diversifying country has become one of the Party’s greatest assets.—
Jonathan Blitzer,
The New Yorker,
22 Sep. 2024
Adjective
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Congolese leaders have a tendency for invective and to blame all their ills on Rwanda.—
Jason K. Stearns,
TIME,
19 Mar. 2025
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The other sticky reality is that the vast majority of prospective CT buyers don’t pay attention to fringe media invective but make very practical buying decisions rooted in dollars and cents.—
Brooke Crothers,
Forbes,
24 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Abusive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abusive. Accessed 22 Apr. 2025.
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