as in abusing
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
the foster parent who had been mistreating his charges was sent to jail
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Recent Examples of mistreating
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
Venezuela has also faced allegations of mistreating its political prisoners, in El Helicoide and elsewhere.
—Uriel Blanco, CNN Money, 8 Jan. 2026
Shatzman said her group’s complaint is the first time a federal judge has been accused of mistreating staff after being reprimanded following an earlier accusation.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 1 Jan. 2026
In its statement following his death, PETA accused Easley of mistreating the tigers under his care.
—Brian Brant, PEOPLE, 11 Dec. 2025
Two of Parcells’ first moves upon taking over as Miami’s vice president of football operations was to run off Zach Thomas, and to trigger a lifelong beef with Jason Taylor, mistreating both Hall of Famers.
—Omar Kelly
november 4, Miami Herald, 4 Nov. 2025
Ridglan Farms, which was under investigation on allegations of mistreating its dogs, agreed to halt its breeding operation by July 1, meaning employees can no longer breed and sell beagles at the facility.
—Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 30 Oct. 2025
The facility has also faced allegations of mistreating prisoners.
—Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 2 Oct. 2025
Their family had accused the Taliban of mistreating the couple, and urged the government to explain why they had been detained.
—Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2025
Doug Friednash, Denver Post, 6 Mar. 2026
Venezuela has also faced allegations of mistreating its political prisoners, in El Helicoide and elsewhere.
—Uriel Blanco, CNN Money, 8 Jan. 2026
Shatzman said her group’s complaint is the first time a federal judge has been accused of mistreating staff after being reprimanded following an earlier accusation.
—Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 1 Jan. 2026
In its statement following his death, PETA accused Easley of mistreating the tigers under his care.
—Brian Brant, PEOPLE, 11 Dec. 2025
Two of Parcells’ first moves upon taking over as Miami’s vice president of football operations was to run off Zach Thomas, and to trigger a lifelong beef with Jason Taylor, mistreating both Hall of Famers.
—Omar Kelly
november 4, Miami Herald, 4 Nov. 2025
Ridglan Farms, which was under investigation on allegations of mistreating its dogs, agreed to halt its breeding operation by July 1, meaning employees can no longer breed and sell beagles at the facility.
—Laura Schulte, jsonline.com, 30 Oct. 2025
The facility has also faced allegations of mistreating prisoners.
—Jade Jackson, IndyStar, 2 Oct. 2025
Their family had accused the Taliban of mistreating the couple, and urged the government to explain why they had been detained.
—Brie Stimson, FOXNews.com, 20 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mistreating
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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Chloe Johnson, 25, was caught on camera abusing several infants at a day care in Blaine, Minnesota.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Ayatollah ruled as a brutal dictator, killing and torturing his own people, imposing harsh restrictions on basic freedoms, and put the lives of our troops and global allies constantly at risk.—
Derek Tran,
Oc Register,
6 Mar. 2026
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Draughan was arraigned Thursday on two counts of second-degree killing/torturing animals, one count of felony firearms, one count of cruelty to an animal resulting in the animal's death, and one count of abandoning animals.—
Joseph Buczek,
CBS News,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The funny thing is, Austin fathered seven children in all, but only Dot, Betty and Helen were coerced into performing, and their father’s monomania is compared, quite alarmingly, to such bullying stage fathers as Murray Wilson (The Beach Boys) and Joe Jackson (The Jackson 5).—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
13 Mar. 2026
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This is also not the first time LAUSD has been blamed in the death of a student amid allegations of bullying.—
Ruben Vives,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mistreating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mistreating. Accessed 16 Mar. 2026.
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