molesting

verb

present participle of molest
as in mistreating

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for molesting
  1. mistreating
  2. violating
  3. outraging
  4. harassing
  5. abusing
  6. manhandling
  7. torturing
  8. brutalizing
Verb
  • After reporting Lopez missing last September, Lopez’s daughter told a detective that Yepez had been mistreating her mother at work, the police report said.
    — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026
  • One example would be laws prohibiting humans from mistreating AIs psychologically or physically.
    — Rob Toews, Forbes.com, 22 June 2026
Definition of mistreating
Verb
  • His February 2024 reelection — with nearly 85% of the valid votes — was highly criticized by constitutional scholars for violating a ban on consecutive reelection.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 July 2026
  • Among the plethora of college pitchers chosen by the Cubs was right-hander Chase Meyer (ninth round), who was dismissed from West Virginia’s program in early March due to violating team rules.
    — Meghan Montemurro, Chicago Tribune, 13 July 2026
Definition of violating
Verb
  • On Day 1 of the truce, and in the days since, Israel has stepped up attacks against Hezbollah, an Iranian proxy, in Lebanon, outraging Iran and leading to accusations the terms had been breached.
    — Justin Fishel, ABC News, 10 Apr. 2026
Definition of outraging
Verb
  • Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia all condemned Iran for harassing their ships.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 8 July 2026
  • In June, police filed a domestic incident report in which Armel was accused of harassing his mother, cops said.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 8 July 2026
Definition of harassing
Verb
  • Four people represented by the ACLU of Tennessee filed a lawsuit in May accusing the task force of abusing the law to block them from documenting officers’ actions, sometimes ordering them to stay more than 100 feet away from arrest scenes.
    — Andy Rose, CNN Money, 10 July 2026
  • Two Miami-Dade church camp counselors were arrested Wednesday for allegedly abusing a 9-year-old boy by placing large orange cones over his head and repeatedly hitting him, according to the sheriff’s office.
    — Sofia Saric, Miami Herald, 9 July 2026
Definition of abusing
Verb
  • But this year’s edition could be the best one yet, and the Wolverines will get a chance to prove that next week in Indianapolis after manhandling Tennessee 95-62 yesterday at the United Center to clinch a spot in the Final Four.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 30 Mar. 2026
  • The Illini literally soaked in the celebration Thursday night after manhandling hometown favorite Houston to advance to the Elite 8 for the second time in three years.
    — Ryan Baker, CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
Definition of manhandling
Verb
  • What unfolds is a unique horror story that is unbelievably entertaining, psychologically torturing and incredibly fun.
    — David Hookstead OutKick, FOXNews.com, 1 July 2026
  • Henry Bernard Montgomery, 38, was arraigned Monday afternoon on one count of third-degree killing/torturing animals and given a $20,000 bond with a GPS tether.
    — Joseph Buczek, CBS News, 22 June 2026
Definition of torturing
Verb
  • The same curriculum includes Prophet Muhammed’s history of brutalizing Christians and Jewish people — a framing that Muslim families and interfaith advocates found issue with in public comment.
    — Rachel Royster. Produced with AI assistance, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 July 2026
  • While Roger Federer is depicted as James Bond, in a tux, elegant and wrinkle-free, Nadal is called Rambo, ripped and relentless, brutalizing the ball and opponents alike.
    — Stuart Miller, Los Angeles Times, 18 May 2026
Definition of brutalizing
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.

Browse Nearby Words

molesters
molesting
molests
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Molesting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/molesting. Accessed 16 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on molesting

Nglish: Translation of molesting for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of bibelot

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

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

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

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All