as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
the foster parent who had been mistreating his charges was sent to jail
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mistreat
Michael alleged that he was also mistreated by Kristine.
—
Rebecca Aizin, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The remark was especially noteworthy since Breillat has been accused by two of her lead actresses, Caroline Ducey and Asia Argento, of mistreating them while filming explicit scenes.
—Victoria Uren, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
Capturing soldiers is not technically a war crime, though mistreating them is, and experts in the rules around warfare agree that no grievance can justify holding anyone hostage, whether from civilian or military life.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2025
The pair allegedly mistreated four of the five children, all of whom are black.
—Landon Mion, Fox News, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for mistreat 
Rebecca Aizin, People.com, 7 Jan. 2025
The remark was especially noteworthy since Breillat has been accused by two of her lead actresses, Caroline Ducey and Asia Argento, of mistreating them while filming explicit scenes.
—Victoria Uren, The New Yorker, 27 Jan. 2025
Capturing soldiers is not technically a war crime, though mistreating them is, and experts in the rules around warfare agree that no grievance can justify holding anyone hostage, whether from civilian or military life.
—Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 25 Jan. 2025
The pair allegedly mistreated four of the five children, all of whom are black.
—Landon Mion, Fox News, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for mistreat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mistreat
Verb
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This perk can be abused in all horse races – like the wager in Kingdom Come 2's Miri Fajta quest – to win easily.—
Kristan Hawkins,
Newsweek,
6 Feb. 2025
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President Andrew Jackson famously abused this authority, and this led to the creation of the Civil Service Act.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
6 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Just like the previous derby at Goodison, a 2-0 defeat last April, they got bullied at times and were knocked out of their stride.—
James Pearce,
The Athletic,
13 Feb. 2025
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Royalist social media accounts also jumped in to defend Bower, accusing the Sussex Squad of bullying him.—
Justin Gest,
Newsweek,
11 Feb. 2025
Verb
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In this sense, the Mormon leader purports to advance both the formal law of the land on Utah Territory and more elemental notions of justice — even while simultaneously playing the role of both oppressor and oppressed.—
Michael M. Rosen,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
7 Feb. 2025
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Many members of the sect contend that they, too, were oppressed under the dictatorship, just like other Syrians.—
Raja Abdulrahim,
New York Times,
27 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near mistreat
Cite this Entry
“Mistreat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mistreat. Accessed 20 Feb. 2025.
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