mistreat

[ mis-treet ]
See synonyms for: mistreatmistreated on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object)
  1. to treat badly or abusively.

Origin of mistreat

1
First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English mistreten; see mis-1, treat

Other words for mistreat

Other words from mistreat

  • mis·treat·ment, noun

Words Nearby mistreat

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use mistreat in a sentence

  • That one human being has the capacity to so mistreat another is not news.

    Punish the Onlookers | Wendy Murphy | October 30, 2009 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Their fears were groundless for Paul would never let a dog go hungry or mistreat a human being.

  • It is one of our peculiarities that we like to mistreat anyone whose soul is differently organized from ours.

    Walter Pieterse | Multatuli
  • Of his return to Ohio and of an attempt by a mob to capture and mistreat him we have his account in the Trumpet of Nov. 1.

    Birth of a Reformation | Andrew Byers
  • If you have cruel step-parents who mistreat you out of pure meanness, everybody sympathizes with you.

    Georgina's Service Stars | Annie Fellows Johnston
  • When they found he was not so bad off as they thought, the two other boys began to abuse and mistreat the stranger.

British Dictionary definitions for mistreat

mistreat

/ (ˌmɪsˈtriːt) /


verb
  1. (tr) to treat badly

Derived forms of mistreat

  • mistreatment, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012