Definitions for abuse
əˈbyuz; əˈbyusabuse

Princeton's WordNet(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. maltreatment, ill-treatment, ill-usage, abuse(noun)

   cruel or inhumane treatment

   "the child showed signs of physical abuse"

2. abuse, insult, revilement, contumely, vilification(noun)

   a rude expression intended to offend or hurt

   "when a student made a stupid mistake he spared them no abuse"; "they yelled insults at the visiting team"

3. misuse, abuse(verb)

   improper or excessive use

   "alcohol abuse"; "the abuse of public funds"

4. mistreat, maltreat, abuse, ill-use, step, ill-treat(verb)

   treat badly

   "This boss abuses his workers"; "She is always stepping on others to get ahead"

5. pervert, misuse, abuse(verb)

   change the inherent purpose or function of something

   "Don't abuse the system"; "The director of the factory misused the funds intended for the health care of his workers"

6. abuse, clapperclaw, blackguard, shout(verb)

   use foul or abusive language towards

   "The actress abused the policeman who gave her a parking ticket"; "The angry mother shouted at the teacher"

7. abuse(verb)

   use wrongly or improperly or excessively

   "Her husband often abuses alcohol"; "while she was pregnant, she abused drugs"

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Abuse(verb)

   to put to a wrong use; to misapply; to misuse; to put to a bad use; to use for a wrong purpose or end; to pervert; as, to abuse inherited gold; to make an excessive use of; as, to abuse one's authority

2. Abuse(verb)

   to use ill; to maltreat; to act injuriously to; to punish or to tax excessively; to hurt; as, to abuse prisoners, to abuse one's powers, one's patience

3. Abuse(verb)

   to revile; to reproach coarsely; to disparage

4. Abuse(verb)

   to dishonor

5. Abuse(verb)

   to violate; to ravish

6. Abuse(verb)

   to deceive; to impose on

7. Abuse(verb)

   improper treatment or use; application to a wrong or bad purpose; misuse; as, an abuse of our natural powers; an abuse of civil rights, or of privileges or advantages; an abuse of language

8. Abuse(verb)

   physical ill treatment; injury

9. Abuse(verb)

   a corrupt practice or custom; offense; crime; fault; as, the abuses in the civil service

10. Abuse(verb)

    vituperative words; coarse, insulting speech; abusive language; virulent condemnation; reviling

11. Abuse(verb)

    violation; rape; as, abuse of a female child

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Abuse

   Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of an entity, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, sexual assault, violation, rape, unjust practices; wrongful practice or custom; offense; crime, or otherwise verbal aggression.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Abuse

   ab-ūz′, v.t. to use wrongly: to pervert: to revile: to violate.—ns. Abuse (ab-ūs′), ill use: misapplication: reproach: vituperation; Abū′sion (Spens.), abuse: deception: reproach.—adj. Abus′ive, containing or practising abuse: full of abuses: vituperative.—adv. Abus′ively.—n. Abus′iveness. [L. ab, away (from what is right), uti, usus, to use.]

Editors Contribution(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Abuse

   Abuse; abusive; when a human is harming an animal or fellow human for unspecified reasons.

   Submitted by rinat on December 20, 2020  

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'abuse' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3044

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'abuse' in Written Corpus Frequency: #3063

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'abuse' in Nouns Frequency: #1191

4. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'abuse' in Verbs Frequency: #989

Anagrams for abuse »

1. Beaus

How to pronounce abuse?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say abuse in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of abuse in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of abuse in Pythagorean Numerology is: 3

Examples of abuse in a Sentence

1. Ken Cuccinelli:

   This is not a vocational center, it is a concentration camp, a place where religious and ethnic minorities are subject to abuse and forced to work in heinous conditions with no recourse and no freedom. This is modern day slavery.

2. Francis Quarles:

   Use law and physic only for necessity. They that use them otherwise abuse themselves into weak bodies and light purses. They are good remedies, bad businesses, and worse recreations.

3. Letta Tayler:

   A rolling state of emergency risks trampling rights and eroding the rule of law and sets a dangerous precedent for abuse elsewhere.

4. Milwaukee Bucks:

   The common denominator in all of these situations has been racism towards the minority community, the abuse of power, and the lack of accountability for officers involved. The lack of repercussions for the police officers involved in so many of these cases is offensive. This is a slap in the face to the victims’ families and communities, black men shouldn’t have to have their guard up and instantly be on the defensive when seeing a police officer, but it’s our reality and a real problem. There must be mutual respect and both sides have to figure out how to accomplish this.

5. Jimmy Carter:

   The more (the Carter Center was) involved in 80 different countries around the world, the more we saw clearly the most serious and unaddressed human rights abuse on earth is among women and girls, it's much worse than I ever dreamed it was.

Images & Illustrations of abuse

Popularity rank by frequency of use