MALTREATING Synonyms: 75 Similar and Opposite Words

maltreating

verb

present participle of maltreat

as in abusing

to inflict physical or emotional harm upon a manager fired for maltreating the staff with needless insults a home for children who have been deprived and maltreated

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as in attacking

to abuse physically if you maltreat the puppy, we will take it away immediately

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for maltreating

Verb

Before his recent arrest, Habib had a history of substantiated misconduct complaints about excessive force and abusing his authority.

— ABC News, ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026
Hostile SIMs can enter the wild through infected SIM software updates, rogue cellular operators abusing remote management platforms, or supply-chain tampering during manufacturing.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of abusing

Verb

New arrival Maghnes Akliouche adds another attacking option this summer, while the signing of Lucas Digne from Villa gives this particular fixture an early subplot, with the full-back facing his old club straight out of the gate.

— Dean Jones, New York Times, 11 Aug. 2026
Three men are charged with attacking a CBS News Chicago crew near the Adler Planetarium at the end of June, before pointing a gun at people in the city's Brighton Park neighborhood before they were arrested.

— CBS Chicago Team, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of attacking

Verb

Working off a few vague details, Bret begins to imagine a link between Robert and a serial killer known as the Trawler, who has been abducting and torturing young women around Los Angeles.

— Leo Lasdun, New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2026
Chilean prosecutors believe Ojeda died while his captors were torturing him to get information about the Venezuelan political opposition.

— Sebastian Rotella, ProPublica, 10 July 2026

Definition of torturing

Verb

After ambushing Nobel hopeful Kersten onboard, Wohmann makes multiple attempts to interview him.

— Alissa Simon, Variety, 7 Aug. 2026
Prosecutors, meanwhile, have alleged that Mangione meticulously planned the killing for months, documenting his thoughts in journals and traveling across the country before ambushing Thompson in New York City.

— Stepheny Price , Michael Ruiz , Maria Paronich, FOXNews.com, 18 June 2026

Definition of ambushing

Verb

But this year’s edition could be the best one yet, and the Wolverines will get a chance to prove that next week in Indianapolis after manhandling Tennessee 95-62 yesterday at the United Center to clinch a spot in the Final Four.

— Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
The Illini literally soaked in the celebration Thursday night after manhandling hometown favorite Houston to advance to the Elite 8 for the second time in three years.

— Ryan Baker, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026

Definition of manhandling

Verb

While the left guard competition remains open, Jones has been on the first string for over a week since replacing Connor Colby, and Jones stood out with an aggressive, mauling nature against the Titans.

— Cam Inman, Mercury News, 11 Aug. 2026
Gunther slowed the match down, mauling Aldis and sending him flying into the corner.

— Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026

Definition of mauling

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maltreated

maltreating

maltreatment

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“Maltreating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/maltreating. Accessed 16 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of maltreating

verb

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