mutilating

verb

present participle of mutilate
as in crippling
to cause severe or permanent injury to was lucky not to be mutilated in the car crash

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 mutilating East Village resident Daniel Rakowitz was charged with killing and mutilating a female acquaintance in 1989, then trying to get rid of the evidence by making soup out of her remains and serving it in Tompkins Square Park. — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 23 Sep. 2026 The 21-year-old pleaded not guilty last month to charges including first-degree murder with special circumstances, lewd and lascivious acts with an individual under 14 and mutilating a body. — Austin Turner, CBS News, 7 Sep. 2026 Guess which mowing league isn't mutilating hedgehogs? — Joe Kinsey Outkick, FOXNews.com, 12 June 2026 Tony Lee Hughes, 38, of the 600 block of Camelot Manor, is charged with Level 6 felonies of killing a domestic animal and mutilating a vertebrate animal. — Jim Woods, Chicago Tribune, 8 June 2026 Apparently, their definition of resistance is to gang rape as many women and men of all ages as possible before torturing, mutilating and murdering them. — Bobby Zirkin, Baltimore Sun, 14 May 2026 Burke is formally charged with murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a person under 14 and mutilating a body. — ABC News, 20 Apr. 2026 The strikes have also ripped through the historic palaces my father proudly showed me as a child, mutilating Iran’s ancient cultural heritage. — Alex Shams, Time, 14 Mar. 2026 Nationwide, the first successful prosecution happened in 2016 when a Houston man was sentenced to five years for creating videos that featured a woman mutilating and killing puppies, chickens and kittens and distributing them on the internet. — Jay Weaver, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mutilating
  1. crippling
  2. incapacitating
  3. wounding
  4. injuring
  5. maiming
  6. disabling
  7. damaging
  8. killing
Verb
  • The flip side is that the state suffers crippling deficits when the market tanks, as during the Global Financial Crisis.
    — Jason Ma, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026
  • In the days after the ceasefire broke down, the Houthis announced a blockade on Saudi shipping, and launched attacks crippling Saudi Arabia’s oil export infrastructure.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of crippling
Verb
  • Fragments of the powerhouse author’s path to her incapacitating accident then unfold through Lowen’s POV, starting with Verity’s steamy first encounter with Jeremy.
    — Fawnia Soo Hoo, Allure, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Smit Machchhar with the cockpit's crash axe, incapacitating him and causing the aircraft to plummet before passengers on board seized control of the plane.
    — Michael Sinkewicz , Elizabeth Pritchett, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of incapacitating
Verb
  • Officials said apartment buildings and industrial infrastructure in three regions were targeted, wounding eight people.
    — Hanna Arhirova, Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Officials said that apartment buildings and industrial infrastructure in three regions were targeted, wounding eight people.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of wounding
Verb
  • During a livestreamed service at a Raytown church Sunday, a truck rammed through the front doors, seriously injuring a member of the congregation.
    — Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 26 Oct. 2026
  • At 12,600 feet elevation, the climber fell through a snow bridge, severely injuring his leg.
    — Tim Fang, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of injuring
Verb
  • The trailer ends with Antonia Thomas, Fina Strazza, Viswanathan and Poehler’s characters maiming themselves for the cause.
    — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 27 Oct. 2026
  • That’s how this season starts, and Reacher’s methods of maiming and/or killing only get more elaborate.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of maiming
Verb
  • The double-press-and-hold control is the only one that can’t be customized here, and it’s locked to disabling/enabling the dial itself.
    — Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The family also believes the burglars may have jammed the home's Wi-Fi signal, disabling security cameras during the break-in.
    — Adi Guajardo, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of disabling
Verb
  • Insects like ants and termites that might be drawn to a tempting tree stump can multiply and affect an entire property, potentially damaging healthy plant life directly and/or by spreading fungi or pathogens to nearby trees and plants.
    — Steven John, Architectural Digest, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Nationwide, vandals have filmed themselves on social media damaging or defacing Flock cameras.
    — Libor Jany, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of damaging
Verb
  • Earlier this week, missiles fired by the Houthis struck a residential area in Taiz, killing two teenage girls and renewing attention on the dangers faced by civilians.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • Russia's aerial attacks hit 12 regions of Ukraine overnight, killing at least four people and wounding scores of others, including five children, Zelenskyy said on social media Thursday.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of killing

Browse Nearby Words

mutilates
mutilating
mutilation
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Cite this Entry

“Mutilating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mutilating. Accessed 2 Nov. 2026.

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