1
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
having been shuffled from foster home to foster home, the orphaned girl felt she had been mishandled by an uncaring society
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to manhandle
to abuse physically
adopted a sadly mishandled puppy from the pound
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to mismanage
to manage badly
we took over as soon as we realized that the fill-in had been mishandling the situation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of mishandle
Not only that, but Intel mishandled its layoffs, at least at first, with damaging effects.
—
Lila MacLellan, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
The lawsuit followed a 2022 probe into the company after a rollout of tickets for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour came under intense scrutiny due to its mishandling.
—Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 18 Sep. 2025
Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano has addressed concerns from lawmakers following whistleblower allegations that the federal agency mishandled sensitive personal data.
—Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
Companies like Outdoor Voices, which announced store closures via Slack messages, exemplify how leaders can mishandle what should be deeply human conversations.
—Caroline Castrillon, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mishandle
Lila MacLellan, Fortune, 1 Oct. 2025
The lawsuit followed a 2022 probe into the company after a rollout of tickets for Taylor Swift's Eras Tour came under intense scrutiny due to its mishandling.
—Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 18 Sep. 2025
Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano has addressed concerns from lawmakers following whistleblower allegations that the federal agency mishandled sensitive personal data.
—Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
Companies like Outdoor Voices, which announced store closures via Slack messages, exemplify how leaders can mishandle what should be deeply human conversations.
—Caroline Castrillon, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mishandle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mishandle
Verb
-
General view of the Google headquarters in King’s Cross as the tech giant faces a 5 billion pound lawsuit in the UK for allegedly abusing its online search dominance.—
April Roach,Tasmin Lockwood,
CNBC,
10 Oct. 2025
-
After the split, LaPaglia claimed she was emotionally abused by her ex during an episode of the BFFs Podcast.—
Stephanie Wenger,
PEOPLE,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Workers described incidents of verbal and physical abuse, including reports from women workers who said they had been manhandled and subjected to obscene remarks and threats.—
Mayu Saini,
Sourcing Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Vancouver completely manhandled a similarly representative Flames lineup, ultimately winning 8-1.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In prison, she was often severely mistreated.—
Michael Collins,
USA Today,
14 Oct. 2025
-
One said no one mistreated him.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Or adhere to your own values, at peril of being mauled?—
Sally Jenkins,
The Atlantic,
11 Oct. 2025
-
He got mauled by Gators in The Swamp.—
Blake Toppmeyer,
USA TODAY,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
How will Fangio rejuvenate a defense that got bullied by a 1-4 Giants team?—
The Athletic NFL Staff,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Tallulah Willis celebrated her resemblance to her famous dad Bruce Willis while calling out adults who bullied her looks as a teenager.—
Jessica Wang,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Gunmen attacked the Nova Music Festival and Kibbutz Be’eri, among other targets.—
Yamiche Alcindor,
NBC news,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Chiefs edge rusher George Karlaftis is capable of lining up on both sides, and Spagnuolo should look to exploit what could be a vulnerable area to attack the Lions’ front.—
Pete Sweeney,
Kansas City Star,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Driving through deep water can also damage a vehicle's mechanical and electrical systems.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Oct. 2025
-
Putin himself has previously suggested that the United States supplying long-range missiles to Ukraine will seriously damage relations between Moscow and Washington.—
Jason Ma,
Fortune,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The paper—supported by Cascale, Textile Exchange and the Cotton Research and Development Corporation—argues that LCAs are often misused across the apparel sector.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
13 Oct. 2025
-
If the guy who runs OpenAI can’t stop his own face from being misused, what chance do the rest of us have?—
Kim Komando The Kim Komando Show,
FOXNews.com,
9 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mishandle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mishandle. Accessed 15 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share