mistreatment

noun

as in maltreatment

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of mistreatment Researchers define workplace bullying as harmful acts of mistreatment between people that go beyond incivility and cross the line to intentionally cause harm. — Jason Walker, The Conversation, 3 Nov. 2026 For centuries, black cats have been linked to bad luck, witchcraft and evil, leading to fear and mistreatment. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 30 Oct. 2026 Federal prosecutors accuse Maduro and Flores of directing a campaign of political repression involving brutal interrogations, arbitrary detentions and the mistreatment of prisoners. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 28 Oct. 2026 Bass responded by accusing her of romanticizing a chief who presided over the mistreatment of Black and Latino residents. — Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026 Nearly a decade after Fulton County seized his horses over allegations of animal mistreatment, a South Fulton horseman's fight to receive just compensation for his property has become a potentially precedent-setting constitutional case. — Brian Unger, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026 The incident is the latest in a series of physical mistreatment investigations at Big Blue Marble Academy in Grovetown, just outside of Augusta. — Taylor Croft, AJC.com, 19 Oct. 2026 On the one hand, Shylock’s mistreatment in the play isn’t a million miles away from how Jews in Venice were treated. — Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026 The Spanish government is investigating accusations detailed in an Amnesty International report of mistreatment and torture by Spanish soldiers. — Joseph Wilson, Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mistreatment
  1. maltreatment
  2. ill-treatment
  3. mismanagement
  4. mishandling
Noun
  • The program is linked to a 32% drop in infant maltreatment reports, which represents a massive prevention of child welfare involvement.
    — Mona Hanna, The Conversation, 10 Sep. 2026
  • The maltreatment eventually led her to run away, later re-entering foster care.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 24 July 2026
Definition of maltreatment
Noun
  • Ferger was cited on six counts of ill-treatment and cruelty to animals, six counts involving duties of animal owners and three counts involving maintenance of premises.
    — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Officers understood that a move against Maduro without clear guarantees of immunity meant risking imprisonment, torture, confiscation of assets, and the ill-treatment of their families.
    — Bobby Ghosh, Time, 3 Jan. 2026
Definition of ill-treatment
Noun
  • The Senate homeland security committee has one of the broadest investigative jurisdictions in Congress, with instances of waste, fraud, abuse, corruption, and mismanagement across the federal government all falling within the panel’s purview.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Decades of mismanagement and corruption have hollowed out Venezuela’s oil industry, while a government crackdown and an economic crisis led to a mass exodus.
    — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of mismanagement
Noun
  • Trump’s mishandling of China policy has opened space for a new strategy.
    — Ali Wyne, Foreign Affairs, 29 Oct. 2026
  • But the alliance between big tech and the film world hasn’t been without substantial friction; take Amazon’s mishandling of Luca Guadagnino’s Artificial.
    — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of mishandling

Browse Nearby Words

mistreating
mistreatment
mistreatments
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Mistreatment.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mistreatment. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of cockamamie

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

The Words of the Week - Nov. 6

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All