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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
Red Cross workers reported that prisoners had been brutalized
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of brutalize
Again, not too thick and not too thin, but just right in protecting those tender areas that rental boots tend to brutalize.
—
Jonathan Thompson, Travel + Leisure, 9 Feb. 2026
Former New York Jets linebacker Darron Lee has been arrested and charged in the murder of his girlfriend, who was found brutalized at a home in Tennessee on Thursday before succumbing to her injuries.
—Jami Ganz, Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2026
Former New York Jets linebacker Darron Lee has been arrested and charged in the murder of his girlfriend, who was found brutalized at a home in Tennessee on Thursday before succumbing to her injuries.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
The Great Migration gave Black Americans a chance to start over without being brutalized for the pursuit of knowledge, liberation and self-expression, and the amount of talent and history in the room is staggering.
—Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Jonathan Thompson, Travel + Leisure, 9 Feb. 2026
Former New York Jets linebacker Darron Lee has been arrested and charged in the murder of his girlfriend, who was found brutalized at a home in Tennessee on Thursday before succumbing to her injuries.
—Jami Ganz, Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2026
Former New York Jets linebacker Darron Lee has been arrested and charged in the murder of his girlfriend, who was found brutalized at a home in Tennessee on Thursday before succumbing to her injuries.
—Jami Ganz, New York Daily News, 7 Feb. 2026
The Great Migration gave Black Americans a chance to start over without being brutalized for the pursuit of knowledge, liberation and self-expression, and the amount of talent and history in the room is staggering.
—Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 3 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutalize
Verb
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But no one here is out to humiliate anyone, which is nasty and unkind and not at all the sort of humor Lawrence trades in.—
Television Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Mar. 2026
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Walz and Ellison were humiliated and could not account for their blundering.—
Joe Soucheray,
Twin Cities,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Now that Democrats have control and have adopted a similar playbook, Republicans accuse them of abusing their power.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
10 Mar. 2026
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Women who had experienced economic abuse from an intimate partner were significantly more likely to commit suicide than other abused women whose cases the report analysed.—
Chas Newkey-Burden,
TheWeek,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Creature thinks his suffering can only cease if it is replicated in another, and expresses this desire through possessive, dehumanizing language.—
Rory Doherty,
Time,
7 Mar. 2026
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The answer is not to dehumanize us.—
Bill Whitaker,
CBS News,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Jaxson Hayes remembered the bruising the Lakers got at Madison Square Garden a month ago when the New York Knicks bullied them on the boards, outscored them by 14 in the second half and had six players score in double figures.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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Do not procrastinate — and do not be bullied, either by your spouse or your attorney!—
Terry Savage,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Robert Josh Grossman read through several pages of text messages between him and Kouri Richins, who is accused of poisoning her husband with a fatal dose of fentanyl.—
Minyvonne Burke,
NBC news,
5 Mar. 2026
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Condors vanished from the state’s North Coast after the arrival of European settlers, who killed other animals with lead bullets and strychnine — poisoning the raptors that feed on carrion.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In January 2025, during an investigation by the Colorado Senate Committee on Ethics, Lewis forged several letters reportedly written by former aides to refute allegations that Lewis was mistreating staff.—
Doug Friednash,
Denver Post,
6 Mar. 2026
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Despite his status as a transfer, Dent mistreated UCLA’s rival from the jump.—
Aaron Heisen,
Oc Register,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Jesse Jackson was an ambassador of hope for the oppressed, who met with kings and queens and presidents and dictators and clergy of all the great religions.—
CBS Chicago Team,
CBS News,
6 Mar. 2026
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The authoritarian regime has brutally oppressed the people of Iran for generations.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The former soldier also said Haitian police mentally and physically tortured the Colombian suspects after they were taken into custody.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
9 Mar. 2026
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For 47 years, Iranians have been subject to a regime that seeks to divide them, isolate them, oppress them, torture them and dispose of them.—
Talla Mountjoy,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Brutalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutalize. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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