1
as in dehumanizing
to make (someone) feel or behave more like an animal than a human being
even three years in a prison camp did not brutalize him
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abusing
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
Red Cross workers reported that prisoners had been brutalized
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutalizing
Verb
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And when markets fail, public institutions must act to prevent dominant players from abusing their power.—
Ryan Whitwam,
ArsTechnica,
5 Sep. 2025 -
Langley says Axon is a monopolist abusing its market position to choke out competition.—
Danielle Chemtob,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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This announcement, humiliating the involved member, is harmful.—
Kelly G. Richardson,
Oc Register,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Jamie Simpson of Covington was sentenced in March to 60 years in prison for holding his wife captive and torturing her for hours before barricading himself inside her home in a lengthy standoff with police.—
Quinlan Bentley,
The Enquirer,
3 Sep. 2025
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Emmett was just 14 when he was kidnapped from his great-uncle’s house by two White men who later admitted to beating and torturing the teen before shooting him in the head and throwing his body into the Tallahatchie River, weighed down by a 75-pound cotton gin fan.—
Rebekah Riess,
CNN Money,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Sherrilyn McQueen, who has published more than 80 novels that reached the New York Times bestseller list under the name Sherrilyn Kenyon, first accused her ex-husband Lawrence Kenyon of poisoning her in a lawsuit in 2019, a year after her husband filed for divorce.—
Evan Mealins,
The Tennessean,
10 Sep. 2025
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Symptoms of salmonella poisoning Symptoms of salmonella infection usually start six hours to six days after swallowing the bacteria.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Wake County schools violated policy when staff did not address the effects of bullying on Danielle, said an April 2024 letter from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.—
Fred Clasen-Kelly,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
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The complaint also alleged that school officials failed in their response to the plaintiff’s complaints and that coaches were aware of the threats of bullying during the camp but did not take meaningful action.—
Paulina Dedaj,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Brutalizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutalizing. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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