1
as in abused
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
having been shuffled from foster home to foster home, the orphaned girl felt she had been mishandled by an uncaring society
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in attacked
to abuse physically
adopted a sadly mishandled puppy from the pound
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in mismanaged
to manage badly
we took over as soon as we realized that the fill-in had been mishandling the situation
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mishandled
None of the pages jammed inside the mechanism, was visibly skewed, or was otherwise mishandled.
—
David English, PCMAG, 9 Mar. 2025
From the department that handled and sometimes mishandled the fatal Rust shooting almost four years ago, the process around the Hackmans has seen information come out sometimes in dribs and drabs.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 7 Mar. 2025
These secrets, if mishandled, can lead to major security breaches.
—Craig Davies, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
That case spanned a decade and included tens of thousands of pages of material that sheds light on how federal prosecutors mishandled that early case.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 1 Mar. 2025
Because, despite the unfortunate expanding history of such episodes involving MLS clubs, if this was about the use of a potential racial slur, it was mishandled by the player’s club and manager, Concacaf and media members at the stadium.
—Ian Nicholas Quillen, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
The group is a trustworthy custodian of a work that is often mishandled today, especially in recent New York productions.
—Joshua Barone, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2025
This is a perpetual problem that has been mishandled.
—Aditi Shrikant, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2025
Enterprises need assurance that their data won’t be mishandled.
—Alexander Puutio, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025
David English, PCMAG, 9 Mar. 2025
From the department that handled and sometimes mishandled the fatal Rust shooting almost four years ago, the process around the Hackmans has seen information come out sometimes in dribs and drabs.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 7 Mar. 2025
These secrets, if mishandled, can lead to major security breaches.
—Craig Davies, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
That case spanned a decade and included tens of thousands of pages of material that sheds light on how federal prosecutors mishandled that early case.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 1 Mar. 2025
Because, despite the unfortunate expanding history of such episodes involving MLS clubs, if this was about the use of a potential racial slur, it was mishandled by the player’s club and manager, Concacaf and media members at the stadium.
—Ian Nicholas Quillen, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2025
The group is a trustworthy custodian of a work that is often mishandled today, especially in recent New York productions.
—Joshua Barone, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2025
This is a perpetual problem that has been mishandled.
—Aditi Shrikant, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2025
Enterprises need assurance that their data won’t be mishandled.
—Alexander Puutio, Forbes, 22 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mishandled
Verb
-
In the filing, the three dancers claimed they were abused, harassed, discriminated against and faced numerous workplace violations while working for the Grammy winner and her Big Grrrl Big Touring Inc.—
Nicholas Rice,
People.com,
13 Apr. 2025
-
In court, Doe testified that Soulja Boy raped her multiple times and regularly abused her physically.—
Matthew Strauss,
Pitchfork,
10 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Workers who were motivated by their belief in public service are being attacked on a daily basis.—
Gary Phelan,
Hartford Courant,
24 Mar. 2025
-
The conflict began after Hamas attacked Israel in October 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.—
Kevin Sabet,
Newsweek,
24 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Unfortunately for them, Steph won’t be bullied – even by paternalistic threats of being sued into oblivion.—
Tatiana Siegel,
Variety,
23 Dec. 2024
-
Watch on Deadline His claims echoed the findings of a Deadline investigation in November 2023, which revealed allegations that Spencer bullied staff and students.—
Jake Kanter,
Deadline,
20 Dec. 2024
Verb
-
Months later, the Department of Justice concluded that five Texas juvenile detention centers violated children's constitutional and civil rights.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA TODAY,
24 Dec. 2024
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The plaintiffs seek a declaratory judgment that the commission, by approving the plans, has violated their fundamental rights.—
Amy Green,
Orlando Sentinel,
24 Dec. 2024
Verb
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Police say Perez, 21, was ambushed and shot twice by Ragan in the stairwell of a Motel Seven.—
Charles Rabin,
Miami Herald,
31 Mar. 2025
-
Once a Brink’s driver exited an armored vehicle to deliver money to a business, prosecutors said robbers ambushed them, with testimony in the case later revealing that the conspirators used assault rifles to carry out their robberies.—
Krystal Nurse,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mishandled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mishandled. Accessed 17 Jul. 2025.
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