maltreatment
Americannoun
Etymology
Origin of maltreatment
First recorded in 1700–10; mal- ( def. ) + treatment ( def. )
Explanation
Maltreatment is what happens when a person (or animal) is abused or deliberately harmed. If you are concerned with the maltreatment of animals, circuses probably disturb you. In the old days, some schoolchildren experienced maltreatment at the hands of their teachers, and while it happens less often today, many of them still deal with the maltreatment of playground bullies. Maltreatment of animals has been documented at large factory farms, and laws have been passed to protect them. Maltreatment adds the mal- prefix, meaning "badly," to treatment, "conduct toward someone."
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.
"He had seen evidence of maltreatment and atrocities before we went up into the rubber plantations, but I think what he saw there shifted his whole view of the colonial experience," Patrick said.
From BBC • Nov. 30, 2024
"Investments to address childhood maltreatment have the potential to avert millions of cases of mental disorders in Australia."
From Science Daily • May 8, 2024
In the child maltreatment study, the researchers noted, “One potential explanation for the association between micro-neighborhood greening and reduced child maltreatment may be the effect that micro-neighborhood greening has on parents’ stress.
From National Geographic • Dec. 14, 2023
The same goes for Pierce County, where caseworkers investigating child maltreatment now leave kids with their parents 43% more often than they did a year ago.
From Seattle Times • Oct. 20, 2023
The Cyclopes and the Titans he left at large; and Earth, enraged at the maltreatment of her other children, appealed to them to help her.
From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton
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.
