1
as in to humiliate
to make (someone) feel or behave more like an animal than a human being
even three years in a prison camp did not brutalize him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
Red Cross workers reported that prisoners had been brutalized
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 brutalize
As her due date approached, she was brought to the infamous detention center Escuela de Mecánica de la Armada (Navy School of Mechanics), known as ESMA, where prisoners were brutalized.
—
Sam Gillette, People.com, 8 Aug. 2025
Heads of foreign intelligence agencies recalled visiting his office and seeing a photograph of Nazi soldiers brutalizing Dagan’s grandfather on the wall.
—Yossi Melman, ProPublica, 7 Aug. 2025
The Undertaker and Big Boss Man brutalized each other in a Hell in a Cell match.
—Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 5 Aug. 2025
Ventura wrapped her testimony nearly a year to the day after CNN published security footage of Combs brutalizing her in a hotel hallway in 2016.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Sam Gillette, People.com, 8 Aug. 2025
Heads of foreign intelligence agencies recalled visiting his office and seeing a photograph of Nazi soldiers brutalizing Dagan’s grandfather on the wall.
—Yossi Melman, ProPublica, 7 Aug. 2025
The Undertaker and Big Boss Man brutalized each other in a Hell in a Cell match.
—Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 5 Aug. 2025
Ventura wrapped her testimony nearly a year to the day after CNN published security footage of Combs brutalizing her in a hotel hallway in 2016.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutalize
Verb
-
An Italian activist who was part of the Gaza aid flotilla and subsequently detained by Israel has described allegations of being mistreated and humiliated while in Israeli custody, with little access to legal assistance.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
-
Even its most mean-spirited plotline, in which a married couple assemble a fake theater production to humiliate their ex-neighbor whose noisiness prompted them to move, is presented as more of a gentle exercise in silliness than anything truly vindictive.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The biggest controversy surrounding Flock Safety centers around allegations that law enforcement agencies have abused the company's technology to target women, immigrants and people engaged in activity.—
Wren Smetana,
AZCentral.com,
5 Oct. 2025
-
Ed Gein later told investigators he and his brother were abused by his father, who died in 1940 of heart failure.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
4 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Relief and health workers say these other methods of delivering food in Gaza, including the GHF sites and aid pallet drops from planes, are dehumanizing and inaccessible for many Palestinians, and expose them to injury or death.—
Soph Warnes,
CNN Money,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Some of these deportation efforts have been purposefully dehumanizing, like the opening of Alligator Alcatraz.—
William D. Lopez,
Time,
29 Sep. 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
-
This creates unavoidable and intolerable conflicts of interest that poison the competitive dynamics that healthy markets require.—
Asad Ramzanali,
Time,
6 Oct. 2025
-
Hogan initially denied poisoning her estranged husband, according to police, but later changed her story.—
Mike Stunson,
Miami Herald,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Israel has strongly denied allegations of mistreating the group.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
6 Oct. 2025
-
The facility has also faced allegations of mistreating prisoners.—
Jade Jackson,
IndyStar,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
However, when your organization was founded less than 45 years after slavery was abolished, when Black women were still being forced to be wet nurses to the very children of those who oppressed them and lynching was a common occurrence below the Mason-Dixon Line?—
Essence,
Essence,
3 Oct. 2025
-
But for now, we’re stuck in a ratchet, where violent losers copy one another, and their deeds become an excuse to oppress the rest of us.—
Michelle Goldberg,
Mercury News,
27 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The Jays tortured the Yankees all season, and notched one final win 5-2 in Game 4 of the AL Division Series on Wednesday.—
The Athletic MLB Staff,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
-
Murphy also revealed there would be a focus on the Hungarian noblewoman Elizabeth Báthory, who, along with her servants, was accused of torturing and killing hundreds of young women in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
9 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Brutalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutalize. Accessed 12 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share