Synonyms of misused

misused

verb

past tense of misuse

1

as in abused

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

• abused
• misapplied
• perverted
• prostituted
• profaned
• degraded
• corrupted
• misemployed
• twisted
• mismanaged
• desecrated
• debased

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• used
• employed
• utilized
• applied
• respected

2

as in bullied

to inflict physical or emotional harm upon

sadly misused by the people he had trusted

Synonyms & Similar Words

• abused
• bullied
• tortured
• mistreated
• injured
• mishandled
• violated
• manhandled
• maltreated
• brutalized
• oppressed
• ill-used
• hurt
• ill-treated
• persecuted
• messed over
• harassed
• took apart
• harmed
• molested
• tormented
• outraged
• kicked around
• victimized
• wronged
• worked (over)
• sandbagged
• beat (up)
• burned
• roughed (up)
• messed (up)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cherished
• fostered
• nurtured
• cared (for)
• favored
• indulged
• spoiled
• gratified
• pampered
• catered (to)
• coddled
• humored
• babied
• mollycoddled

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of misused

While officials did not say what technology was misused, Itasca does use Flock Safety cameras to help with their police investigations, including burglaries and hit-and-runs. — Todd Feurer, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026

Flock Safety, which operates a nationwide network of license-plate-reading cameras used by police to track vehicles, announced new safeguards after reports that officers misused the system to surveil people. — Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026

Police allege Goodson, who has also been placed on administrative leave, misused the system because the victim was not part of a criminal investigation, the outlet reported. — Nicole Acosta, PEOPLE, 13 Aug. 2026

The maker of the Taser recently phased out its drive-stun feature, a similar pain compliance tool that had been misused by some officers. — ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026

Like some other powerful technologies, the software can also be misused. — Tam Nguyen, The Conversation, 10 Aug. 2026

The main reason that high-quality asset protection structures are penetrated is because they were misused or disregarded. — Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026

Identity monitoring goes a step further by watching for signs your personal information is being misused. — Evan Zimmer, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026

The Driver and Vehicle Information Database (DAVID), used by the FWC to track its critics, has a history of being misused by Florida law enforcement. — Isabella Herrera, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Aug. 2026