BESTIALIZE Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

bestialize

verb

Definition of bestialize

as in to humiliate

to make (someone) feel or behave more like an animal than a human being men who had been bestialized by war

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bestialize

Verb

Continue reading … STILL THEIR TURF — Walker outgains Denver's entire offense as Chiefs humiliate Broncos on MNF.

— , FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2026
On a cold night in November 2011, in a field outside Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine, a gang of thugs stormed a Soviet scientific research institute, beat and humiliated the staff and burned the place to the ground.

— Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of humiliate

Verb

Ten lions found dead in a wildlife reserve in Tanzania are suspected to have been poisoned, according to wildlife officials.

— Kristin Wright, NPR, 20 Sep. 2026
The attacks escalated this summer, with 16 trees — 13 Jeffrey pines and three white firs — poisoned on three occasions between May and early August.

— Alex Wigglesworth, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of poison

Verb

Hisbah members also face widespread allegations of rights abuses in their enforcement operations, including subjecting offenders to dehumanizing punishments such as public beatings or shaming.

— ABC News, ABC News, 28 Aug. 2026
To dehumanize Jews, invoke Goebbels and Nazi imagery, tell Jews to ‘go back to Poland,’ and describe a swastika painted outside a Jewish family’s home as an appropriate symbol for ‘zionazis’ is not criticism of Israel.

— Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of dehumanize

Verb

Allegations of abuse, inmates being brutalized by jailers, and dire conditions have plagued the facility for years, leading some county leaders, former sheriffs and civil rights advocates to call for the jail to be closed.

— James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 9 Sep. 2026
Because they’ve been brutalized by the same machinery of repression.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of brutalize

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.

Browse Nearby Words

bestiality

bestialize

bestialized

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Bestialize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bestialize. Accessed 22 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of bestialize

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

nemesis

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Popular in Wordplay

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?

Popular

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Games & Quizzes