mutilate

verb mu·ti·late \ ˈmyü-tə-ˌlāt \

Updated on: 14 May 2018

Definition of mutilate

mutilated; mutilating

transitive verb

1 : to cut up or alter radically so as to make imperfect

the child mutilated the book with his scissors

a painting mutilated by vandals

2 : to cut off or permanently destroy a limb or essential part of : cripple

His arm was mutilated in the accident.

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mutilation

play \ˌmyü-tə-ˈlā-shən\ noun

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mutilator

play \ˈmyü-tə-ˌlā-tər\ noun

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See mutilate defined for kids

Examples of mutilate in a Sentence

a painting mutilated by vandals
was lucky not to be mutilated in the car crash

Recent Examples of mutilate from the Web

Ted Bundy mutilated and murdered perhaps more than 30 young women in the 1970s.

— jan hoffman, New York Times, "Do Serial Killers Just Stop? Yes, Sometimes," 26 Apr. 2018
Grand Auctions, a Kent, England, auction house, said the post card arrived at the Ealing Police Station on Oct. 29, 1888, just days before one of Jack the Ripper's victims, Mary Kelly, was mutilated and murdered on Nov. 9, 1888.

— sean rossman, USA TODAY, "Rare 'Jack the Ripper' post card to police will be auctioned off," 26 Apr. 2018
After the brutal attacks, Wakefield mutilated his own body by slicing off his own forearm and gouging out his own eye.

— david boroff, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Husband who decapitated wife and their two dogs says sorry to her family," 7 Apr. 2018
The man at the center of one of the most grisly cases in recent Phoenix history was sentenced to 29 years in prison Friday morning, nearly three years after beheading his wife and two dogs before mutilating himself.

— megan cassidy, azcentral, "Phoenix man who beheaded wife and dogs gets 29 years in prison," 6 Apr. 2018
Her body was found in the sea, mutilated, almost 12 days later.

— michelle iracheta, Houston Chronicle, "No charges in Shenandoah deer blind investigation," 3 Apr. 2018
In other cases, VARA has allowed artists to sue when their work has been modified or damaged, reworked by another artists, prevented sales of artwork after it has been damaged or mutilated, and also established protections for incomplete artworks.

— jason daley, Smithsonian, "What to Know About 5Pointz Graffiti Collective’s Big Win at Court," 15 Feb. 2018
Perhaps the most perplexing unsolved mystery involves the gruesome murder (her body was mutilated and severed at the waist) of aspiring actress Elizabeth Short, who became known after her death in January 1947 as the Black Dahlia.

— leba hertz, San Francisco Chronicle, "Natalie Wood investigation sparks interest in unsolved Hollywood crimes," 7 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'mutilate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of mutilate

Latin mutilatus, past participle of mutilare, from mutilus truncated, maimed

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1534

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

mutilate Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of mutilate

maim, cripple, mutilate, batter, mangle mean to injure so severely as to cause lasting damage. maim implies the loss or injury of a bodily member through violence.