abuse (n.)

  1. cruel or inhumane treatment; the child showed signs of physical abuse

    [ Syn: maltreatment , ill-treatment , ill-usage ]

  2. a rude expression intended to offend or hurt; when a student made a stupid mistake he spared them no abuse; they yelled insults at the visiting team

    [ Syn: insult , revilement , contumely , vilification ]

  3. improper or excessive use; alcohol abuse; the abuse of public funds

    [ Syn: misuse ]

    abuse (v.)

  1. treat badly; This boss abuses his workers; She is always stepping on others to get ahead

    [ Syn: mistreat , maltreat , ill-use , step , ill-treat ]

  2. change the inherent purpose or function of something; Dont abuse the system; The director of the factory misused the funds intended for the health care of his workers

    [ Syn: pervert , misuse ]

  3. use foul or abusive language towards; The actress abused the policeman who gave her a parking ticket; The angry mother shouted at the teacher

    [ Syn: clapperclaw , blackguard , shout ]

  4. use wrongly or improperly or excessively; Her husband often abuses alcohol; while she was pregnant, she abused drugs'

The dictionary is based on the WordNet Electronic Lexical Database.
WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2011 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.