maltreat
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of maltreat
First recorded in 1700–10; earlier maltrait, from French maltraiter; see mal-, treat
Explanation
If you maltreat someone, you treat them very badly. It's best not to maltreat your little sister — she may grow up to be bigger, stronger, and smarter than you. Also, it's just not very nice. If you're cruel to someone on purpose, you maltreat them. You can also say abuse or mistreat. If a big company maltreats its workers, they may rebel by going on strike or joining a lawsuit. This verb combines the prefix mal-, "badly, poorly, or wrong," and the word treat, from the Latin root tractare, "manage or handle."
Vocabulary lists containing maltreat
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.
Bosses and colleagues who maltreat subordinates with ridicule or lack of consideration are as common as the companies who protect them.
From Salon • Jan. 22, 2022
“How can you maltreat such a beautiful woman?” he was said to have asked the errant husband.
From The Guardian • Mar. 14, 2019
A member of the Arctic Brotherhood who took oath never to maltreat horse or dog.
From Time Magazine Archive
"But they didn't maltreat us, and the food was kind of O.K."
From Time Magazine Archive
It is a mercy they did not maltreat the inmates.”
From Renshaw Fanning's Quest A Tale of the High Veldt by Mitford, Bertram
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.
