1
as in abusing
to put to a bad or improper use
an actor who misused his considerable talent by appearing in too many lousy movies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bullying
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
sadly misused by the people he had trusted
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of misusing
School leaders in the Woodland Hills School District strongly denied claims that the district is misusing funds.
—
Ricky Sayer, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
Collins’ former chief of staff and loyal aide, Brandon Phillips, is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee for allegedly misusing taxpayer funds.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 16 Jan. 2026
Despite the size of her gifts, which now often exceed the recipient organization’s annual budget, research from the Center for Effective Philanthropy has found that concerns about nonprofits misusing Scott’s funds or growing unsustainably have largely not been born out.
—Thalia Beaty, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Despite the size of her gifts, which now often exceed the recipient organization’s annual budget, research from the Center for Effective Philanthropy has found that concerns about nonprofits misusing Scott’s funds or growing unsustainably have largely not been born out.
—Thalia Beaty, Fortune, 12 Jan. 2026
Jacobson retired effective immediately on Monday after he was confronted by Mayor Justin Elicker and admitted to misusing the money, Elicker told reporters.
—David Matthews, New York Daily News, 6 Jan. 2026
According to the Cleveland Clinic, vocal cord lesions are growths that form on the vocal cords, typically as a result of a person overusing or misusing their voice.
—Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026
As the number of successful emergency docket requests continued to accumulate, the liberal minority expressed increasing frustration through its dissents, accusing the majority of misusing the emergency docket.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 1 Jan. 2026
When Brown called 911 again for help from different officers, the sergeant arrested him on a misdemeanor charge of misusing 911.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Dec. 2025
Ricky Sayer, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
Collins’ former chief of staff and loyal aide, Brandon Phillips, is being investigated by the House Ethics Committee for allegedly misusing taxpayer funds.
—Aj Willingham, AJC.com, 16 Jan. 2026
Despite the size of her gifts, which now often exceed the recipient organization’s annual budget, research from the Center for Effective Philanthropy has found that concerns about nonprofits misusing Scott’s funds or growing unsustainably have largely not been born out.
—Thalia Beaty, Los Angeles Times, 13 Jan. 2026
Despite the size of her gifts, which now often exceed the recipient organization’s annual budget, research from the Center for Effective Philanthropy has found that concerns about nonprofits misusing Scott’s funds or growing unsustainably have largely not been born out.
—Thalia Beaty, Fortune, 12 Jan. 2026
Jacobson retired effective immediately on Monday after he was confronted by Mayor Justin Elicker and admitted to misusing the money, Elicker told reporters.
—David Matthews, New York Daily News, 6 Jan. 2026
According to the Cleveland Clinic, vocal cord lesions are growths that form on the vocal cords, typically as a result of a person overusing or misusing their voice.
—Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 5 Jan. 2026
As the number of successful emergency docket requests continued to accumulate, the liberal minority expressed increasing frustration through its dissents, accusing the majority of misusing the emergency docket.
—Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 1 Jan. 2026
When Brown called 911 again for help from different officers, the sergeant arrested him on a misdemeanor charge of misusing 911.
—Charlotte Observer, 11 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misusing
abusing
Verb
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The Labor Department inspector general's office has interviewed staff in connection with the investigation, which followed a complaint that Chavez-DeRemer was having an inappropriate relationship with a subordinate and abusing her office.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Benny isn’t abusing his daughter.—
Maggie Fremont,
Vulture,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Misusing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misusing. Accessed 7 Feb. 2026.
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