molest

verb

Definition of molestnext
as in to mistreat

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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 molest An Oroville man and accused cult leader was sentenced to 225 years in prison Tuesday for molesting four young girls and raping two women from the group, authorities said. — Seamus Bozeman, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026 According to the National Park Service, a pet running at large and molesting wildlife may be put down if necessary for public safety or wildlife protection. — Katie Jackson, Travel + Leisure, 8 June 2026 From that one girl’s story, police learned that Epstein had been molesting dozens of girls from a West Palm Beach high school. — Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026 The flurry of headlines about what was left out of the film—most obviously, the 1993 lawsuit that accused Jackson of molesting a 13-year-old, and subsequent lawsuits alleging similar abuse—also haven’t mattered. — Jemele Hill, The Atlantic, 16 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for molest
Recent Examples of Synonyms for molest
  1. mistreat
  2. violate
  3. harass
  4. manhandle
  5. maltreat
  6. brutalize
  7. injure
  8. bully
Verb
  • The other has been dismissed or mistreated in a clinic before, and reads the same sentence as confirmation that they were not told the whole story the first time.
    — Aleeza Gerstein, The Conversation, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Creative labor certainly seems to be disappearing as studios experiment with generative AI, and artists and craftspeople are rightly afraid of being further mistreated, devalued, or replaced.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of mistreat
Verb
  • More than two dozen law enforcement officials, from crime analysts to chiefs of police, have been charged with violating their oaths of office and conducting unauthorized searches within the Flock Safety system in Georgia in the past few months.
    — Irene Wright, USA Today, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The letter alleged the Smithsonian ​may have violated anti-discrimination laws.
    — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of violate
Verb
  • The United States, Russia, and China are now all able to harass one another’s satellites in ways that have real consequences.
    — Jeffrey Lewis, Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2026
  • And the American Indian Movement originated in Minneapolis in 1968, establishing community patrols to monitor police who were harassing Native American groups.
    — Emily Witt, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of harass
Verb
  • After getting physically manhandled far too often last year, Colorado was the more physical team against a Yellow Jackets program that prides itself on toughness.
    — Seth Emerson, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The Los Angeles Police Department released a video that shows officers at the Valley jail manhandle an uncooperative inmate who died after he was left handcuffed with a bag over his head while laying prone on the bunk in his cell.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of manhandle
Verb
  • Dependency courts most often involve children who have been removed from parents because they were neglected, abandoned or maltreated.
    — Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 10 June 2026
  • There are bosses in companies that maltreat their workers globally.
    — Clare Mulroy, USA Today, 28 Apr. 2026
Definition of maltreat
Verb
  • Because they’ve been brutalized by the same machinery of repression.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Sep. 2026
  • How many people will stay home rather than risk being racially profiled and brutalized?
    — Kica Matos, Time, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of brutalize
Verb
  • Hobbs has not practiced since mid-August, Green was injured in the second preseason game and Prysock went down in the finale.
    — Matt Barrows, New York Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Park was awarded a Purple Heart, a distinction for those injured or killed in combat.
    — Brad Lendon, CNN Money, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of injure
Verb
  • Marie-Louise is enraged one minute, subservient the next, bullying the staff while throwing banquets for Nazi officials.
    — David Denby, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The Fire turned up the pressure defensively in the paint and consistently bullied the Dream out of it.
    — Micahya Costen, AJC.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of bully

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moles
molest
molestation
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Cite this Entry

“Molest.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/molest. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

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