MISUSED Synonyms: 63 Similar and Opposite Words

misused

verb

past tense of misuse

as in abused

to put to a bad or improper use an actor who misused his considerable talent by appearing in too many lousy movies

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as in bullied

to inflict physical or emotional harm upon sadly misused by the people he had trusted

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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 misused The maker of the Taser recently phased out its drive-stun feature, a similar pain compliance tool that had been misused by some officers. — ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026 Like some other powerful technologies, the software can also be misused. — Tam Nguyen, The Conversation, 10 Aug. 2026 On July 31, 2026, Polk County Police asked the GBI to investigate allegations that Royston had misused the Cedartown Police Department's Flock Safety System, a license plate reader network. — Zachary Bynum, CBS News, 9 Aug. 2026 The main reason that high-quality asset protection structures are penetrated is because they were misused or disregarded. — Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026 Identity monitoring goes a step further by watching for signs your personal information is being misused. — Evan Zimmer, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026 The Driver and Vehicle Information Database (DAVID), used by the FWC to track its critics, has a history of being misused by Florida law enforcement. — Isabella Herrera, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2026 Touted as dream crime-fighting tools, networks of roadside cameras by Flock and other companies have also been misused to spy on people’s lives. — Drew Harwell, Washington Post, 4 Aug. 2026 The accompanying report, released in late May, found that the museum misused grants provided by the US Geological Survey, given for STATEMAP, its state geological mapping program. — Harrison Jacobs, ARTnews.com, 31 July 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for misused

abused

Verb

Because of Alden’s quick thinking, Danny now has evidence of all the women abused by Hal and the Eastons over the years.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 17 Aug. 2026
In one, Henderson represents a group of families who allege a special education teacher physically abused students.

— Kate Armanini, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of abused

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misuse

misused

misuses

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“Misused.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misused. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of misused

verb

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