self-mutilation

noun

self-mu·​ti·​la·​tion ˌself-ˌmyü-tə-ˈlā-shən 

: the act of inflicting injury or disfigurement to one's own body

The original wound reopened and became dangerously infected, and yet this classic display of canine self-mutilation continued.

—Dog Watch

But there seem to be, nevertheless, very few cases of actual cowardice. Of these, the majority involve self-mutilation by conscripts, in an attempt to be invalided out of the Army.

—Carey Schofield

… a Los Angeles Superior Court judge on Tuesday ordered the state to pay for the private care of a 19-year- old man suffering from a rare neurological disorder that prompts violent bouts of self-mutilation.

—Claudia Puig

specifically : the act of purposely hurting oneself (as by cutting or burning the skin) as an emotional coping mechanism : self-harm

… the terrible incidence of self-mutilation, or cutting, particularly among young girls.

—Judy Quinn

self-mutilate

ˌself-ˈmyü-tə-ˌlāt 

intransitive verb

self-mutilated; self-mutilating; self-mutilates

self-mutilating behavior

Examples of self-mutilation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The film makes the resonant if not heavy-handed point that the world, and women, favors taller people, that masculine value is enmeshed with height—an argument that the face of the looksmaxxing movement, Clavicular, extends to other self-mutilation practices that aim to make men more beautiful. — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 4 June 2026

After an accident tears an alarmingly large chunk of Katie’s skin, Katie doubles down on self-mutilation and manages to spread the curse to her two siblings, who begin to act as erratically as her. — Dani Di Placido, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2026

In animals, it is known to cause symptoms such as excessive salivation, aggressiveness and self-mutilation, the CDC said. — Julianna Duennes Russ, Austin American Statesman, 30 Dec. 2025

Jailhouse records show that Smith was disciplined at least five times between 2010 and 2017 for infractions including self-mutilation, drug use and possession of narcotics or marijuana. — Lynsey Eidell, PEOPLE, 2 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1637, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for self-mutilation

• abbreviation
• abomination
• acceleration
• accentuation
• accommodation
• accreditation
• acculturation
• accumulation
• acetylation
• adjudication
• administration
• adulteration

Medical Definition

self-mutilation

noun

self-mu·​ti·​la·​tion -ˌmyüt-ə-ˈlā-shən 

: injury or disfigurement of oneself

self-mutilation associated with the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome