sexual abuse

American  

[sek-shoo-uhl uh-byoos] / ˈsɛk ʃu əl əˈbyus /

noun

1. nonconsensual touching of a person for one’s own sexual gratification or for the sexual gratification of someone else, especially when the nonconsenting party is a child.

   When children experience sexual abuse, it is rarely a stranger perpetrating the crime, but more commonly an authority figure or other adult they know.

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sexual abuse Cultural  

1. Unwanted sexual activity forced on a person by another through coercion or threats.

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Etymology

Origin of sexual abuse

First recorded in 1875–80 in the sense “masturbation”

Example Sentences

Baroness Anne Longfield, a former children's commissioner, will chair the inquiry into child sexual abuse by grooming gangs, which Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has promised will be a "moment of reckoning".

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

Intense angst over César Chávez’s legacy amid sexual abuse allegations is ripping through California classrooms, prompting teachers, scholars and school systems to urgently revamp lessons about one of California’s most widely taught historic figures.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 23, 2026

Romero said the organization is reaching out to groups with expertise in helping victims of sexual abuse.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 19, 2026

Australia's prime minister has apologised for calling a former Australian of the Year and sexual abuse survivor "difficult", saying it was only in reference to the hardships she has faced.

From BBC • Feb. 25, 2026

It didn't appear that emotional trauma or abuse was bedizened as sexual abuse in a display to get others to empathize with her tattered past.

From Tokyo to Tijuana: Gabriele Departing America by Sills, Steven (Steven David Justin)

Related Words

• exploitation
• impropriety
• intimidation
• victimization