ill-used

verb

past tense of ill-use
as in abused
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon some of the employees felt so ill-used by the new manager that they quit

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ill-used
  1. abused
  2. bullied
Verb
  • Hodge says he was abused in multiple federal penitentiaries, but was frequently blocked from filing complaints about it.
    — Christie Thompson, NPR, 13 July 2026
  • Prosecutors have alleged that Millete physically abused May, pointing to her past journal entries.
    — Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2026
Definition of abused
Verb
  • Bang-geul was bullied by her older half-siblings, who looked down on their younger sister because of her mom’s former status as a domestic employee.
    — Kayti Burt, Time, 6 July 2026
  • This was a rabid, partisan home-soil advantage that flat-out bullied the squad into surviving.
    — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 2 July 2026
Definition of bullied
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.

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ill-use
ill-used
ill-uses
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Cite this Entry

“Ill-used.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ill-used. Accessed 20 Jul. 2026.

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