ill-treat
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
- ill-treatment noun
Etymology
Origin of ill-treat
First recorded in 1695–1705
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
In these quotations, to vanquish foes and destroy enemies does not mean to ill-treat others in any way, or even to seek victory over them in a traditional sense.
From Washington Post • Mar. 11, 2019
The Cayugas knew me as a belt-bearer from Sir William; they could not ill-treat me.
From Cardigan by Chambers, Robert W. (Robert William)
Why do you drive through the ditch, if you have a bridge within ten yards? and to ill-treat brown Lizzie!
From Problematic Characters A Novel by Spielhagen, Friedrich
"Seigneur," answered Marceline trembling, "they wanted to ill-treat poor Yvon."
From The Infant's Skull Or The End of the World. A Tale of the Millennium by Sue, Eugène
“Who asked you to ill-treat my friend?” he cried.
From With Rifle and Bayonet A Story of the Boer War by Brereton, F. S. (Frederick Sadleir)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
