1
as in to humiliate
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
Red Cross workers reported that prisoners had been brutalized
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of brutalize
Here in Los Angeles, as in much of coastal California where the roads and highways are broken and brutalized due to overpopulation, a plush airbag suspension paired with this punchy hybrid powertrain would serve well, very well indeed.
—
Mark Ewing, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
Gunther even brutalized Jimmy while Jay was strapped to a ring rope, unable to assist his brother.
—Shaheem Reid, Variety, 19 Apr. 2025
The sixth emperor of the famed Mughal dynasty, he is considered by many detractors to be a tyrant who brutalized women, razed Hindu temples, forced religious conversions and waged wars against Hindu and Sikh rulers.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 18 Apr. 2025
Pitching was supposed to be the hallmark of this year’s club, but it’s been brutalized because of injuries.
—Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Mark Ewing, Forbes, 22 Mar. 2025
Gunther even brutalized Jimmy while Jay was strapped to a ring rope, unable to assist his brother.
—Shaheem Reid, Variety, 19 Apr. 2025
The sixth emperor of the famed Mughal dynasty, he is considered by many detractors to be a tyrant who brutalized women, razed Hindu temples, forced religious conversions and waged wars against Hindu and Sikh rulers.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 18 Apr. 2025
Pitching was supposed to be the hallmark of this year’s club, but it’s been brutalized because of injuries.
—Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 8 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brutalize
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brutalize
Verb
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Ukrainians said they were subjected to beatings, electric shocks and dog attacks by Russian authorities, not only to extract information but to intimidate and humiliate them.—
Richard Engel,
NBC news,
11 June 2025
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Musk, who also owns SpaceX, had backed Isaacman, and felt betrayed and humiliated when Trump changed his mind, according to the report.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
7 June 2025
Verb
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Three-time gold medal sprinter Gabby Thomas was verbally abused at a track meet in Philadelphia, not the first harassment this year.—
Nick Canepa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 June 2025
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Smart was subjected to daily rapes and often abused and starved throughout her 9-month ordeal.—
Stephanie Kaloi,
People.com,
5 June 2025
Verb
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In this evil place that was designed to dehumanize you, these women created this sisterhood and refused to allow that to happen.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
4 June 2025
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Instead of offering care, the jail isolates, neglects, and dehumanizes people who need treatment — not incarceration.—
Justyna Rzewinski,
New York Daily News,
21 May 2025
Verb
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Kids with alopecia areata get bullied in school every day.—
Shamsha Damani,
Health,
13 June 2025
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Cash noted she was bullied throughout school for her learning disability.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 June 2025
Verb
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The toxins accumulate in filter-feeding fish, and then poison larger mammals who gobble up the fish in mass quantities.—
Corinne Purtill,
Los Angeles Times,
5 June 2025
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Historically, grizzlies were shot, trapped and poisoned across much of the continent, reducing them to just 45 percent of their former North American range by the 1970s, with the remnants almost entirely in Canada and Alaska.—
Lesley Evans Ogden,
Smithsonian Magazine,
23 May 2025
Verb
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More recently, in June of last year, thirty-four senators sent a letter to Andy Jassy, the C.E.O. of Amazon, addressing allegations that the company mistreated drivers in its Delivery Service Partner program.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 May 2025
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This is not the singer’s first time being accused of mistreating animals.—
DeMicia Inman,
VIBE.com,
28 May 2025
Verb
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Cell 16 credited the Black Liberation movement as an inspiration for their group while acknowledging that women were oppressed even within that movement.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
11 June 2025
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In today's therapy culture, people are cast as either oppressed or oppressors, as if those are the only options.—
Tom Rogers,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 May 2025
Verb
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The footage includes a scene in which a Hitler look-alike is tortured.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
3 June 2025
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In 2024, Chinese state media reported at least four separate cases of university students allegedly torturing cats.—
Rebecca Wright,
CNN Money,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Brutalize.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brutalize. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.
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