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 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 Nearly a year after her death, Burke was arrested and charged with first-degree murder with special circumstances, lewd and lascivious acts with an individual under 14 and mutilating a body. — Austin Turner, CBS News, 29 Apr. 2026 D4vd pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, lewd and lascivious acts with a person under 14 and mutilating a body in connection with Rivas Hernandez’s death. — Jessica Schaldebeck, New York Daily News, 21 Apr. 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
  • Strikes over unpaid salaries, violent attacks on clinics and public mistrust fueled by misinformation are crippling fragile response efforts, as workers like Bondele keep showing up.
    — Prosper Heri Ngorora, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Malawi, an African nation, faced severe 18-hour blackouts after Tropical Storm Ana destroyed a major hydropower dam in 2022, crippling its grid and highlighting reliance on intermittent solar and expensive diesel.
    — Ken Silverstein, Forbes.com, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of crippling
Verb
  • Some people with severe cases – with a high fever or incapacitating diarrhea that is bloody – may need to get care at a hospital.
    — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The driver hits Leatherface in the head with a wrench, incapacitating him long enough for the driver to run away and Sally to jump into the cab of a passing pickup truck.
    — Jordana Rosenfeld, Encyclopedia Britannica, 10 July 2026
Definition of incapacitating
Verb
  • Thai police shot and arrested a teenager who opened fire at a school in the south of the country in February, killing the principal and wounding two students.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026
  • All of the missiles slipped past Ukrainian defenses, killing least 17 people and wounding dozens more.
    — Nathan Hodge, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of wounding
Verb
  • The trip changed his life when terrorist Rashid Baz opened fire on the van, murdering 16-year-old Ari Halberstam, and injuring several others.
    — Lisa Rozner, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026
  • During one memorable moment, a powerful wave crashed over a sea wall in Ventura, injuring eight people.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of injuring
Verb
  • Even in 2026, the category’s identity is anchored in infamous scenes of maiming, torture, and cathartic bloodshed.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 22 July 2026
  • All of the 200 children and adolescents initially qualified for the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder; after the group’s fifth session, with war still killing and maiming their friends, only 30% qualified.
    — James Gordon, Time, 14 July 2026
Definition of maiming
Verb
  • In June, the current presidential administration imposed export controls on Anthropic, which led to the company disabling its advanced Mythos 5 and Fable 5 models.
    — Eric Reicin, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Iran is the prime suspect in the cyberattacks, which can blind utility operators by changing passwords or disabling alarms, according to the sources, though its involvement has not been officially confirmed.
    — Luke Barr, ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of disabling
Verb
  • There are different types of algae scrapers for both glass and acrylic fish tanks, so choose accordingly to avoid scratching or damaging the aquarium.
    — BestReviews, Mercury News, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Use low-pressure water to avoid damaging the aluminum fins and causing performance issues.
    — Abby Monteil, The Spruce, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of damaging
Verb
  • Prosecutors say after killing her children, Clancy cut her wrists and neck and jumped from a second-story window, leaving her partially paralyzed.
    — Andi Babineau, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Militants affiliated with the Islamic State group attacked a village in Congo near the border with Uganda early Saturday, killing at least 13 people and burning and looting homes, a local civil society group said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 8 Aug. 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 12 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on mutilating

Nglish: Translation of mutilating for Spanish Speakers

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