mishandled

verb

past tense of mishandle
1
as in abused
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon having been shuffled from foster home to foster home, the orphaned girl felt she had been mishandled by an uncaring society

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in attacked
to abuse physically adopted a sadly mishandled puppy from the pound

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3
as in mismanaged
to manage badly we took over as soon as we realized that the fill-in had been mishandling the situation

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mishandled The heat wave has gone down in history as being grossly mishandled by the city. — Adam Harrington, CBS News, 1 July 2026 Castle said victims are too often left with limited options when allegations are mishandled or ignored within the ranks. — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 9 June 2026 Judge Wilson seemed to agree, finding in his ruling that a detective mishandled the evidence and failed to follow proper procedure. — CNN Money, 4 June 2026 Garcia Martinez, who says his mother is in removal proceedings because Lozano mishandled her case, lives every day in fear that she will be deported. — ABC News, 29 June 2026 But last month, Lara took legal action against State Farm, alleging the company mishandled wildfire claims in the devastated Los Angeles fire zones. — Pat Maio, Oc Register, 3 June 2026 On Thursday, a judge dismissed the murder case against Spencer after ruling that the Lonoke County Sheriff’s Office mishandled evidence. — Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 6 June 2026 The audio tapes were obtained by the Justice Department during its investigation into concerns that Biden mishandled classified materials. — Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 19 June 2026 During an hours-long hearing on Monday, Shannon Gallagher, 56, argued that Broward Circuit Court Judge Ernest Kollra should dismiss the charges against her because police mishandled key evidence that could have cleared her. — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mishandled
  1. abused
  2. attacked
  3. damaged
  4. bullied
  5. manhandled
  6. violated
  7. mistreated
  8. mauled
Verb
  • Some dogs fear brooms, vacuum cleaners or other household products, particularly if they’ve been hurt or abused in the past.
    — BestReviews, Mercury News, 2 July 2026
  • Lamar called out Drake for allegedly having a secret child, and Drake claimed that Kendrick abused his fiancée.
    — René Ostberg, Encyclopedia Britannica, 2 July 2026
Definition of abused
Verb
  • Police said former professional soccer player Badea and another man attacked Zeraati before fleeing in a getaway car driven by Stana and then flying out of the country from Heathrow Airport.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 July 2026
  • The three men who attacked our CBS News Chicago crew near Adler Planetarium before pointing a gun at people in Brighton Park on Monday afternoon have been charged.
    — Jeramie Bizzle, CBS News, 2 July 2026
Definition of attacked
Verb
  • Residential buildings were badly damaged in the assault, leaving people trapped in multi-story apartment blocks and an entire family that was killed pulled from the rubble, while cars were seen burning on city streets.
    — Helen Regan, CNN Money, 6 July 2026
  • As a bonus, those seasons are ideal for planting a replacement shrub or re-establishing a lawn if it is damaged during the shrub removal.
    — Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 5 July 2026
Definition of damaged
Verb
  • They got bullied in that one, showing a tremendous lack of physicality.
    — Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 30 June 2026
  • Because he was being completely bullied and demeaned and excused.
    — Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 25 June 2026
Definition of bullied
Verb
  • During this stretch, the Colts will face three AFC opponents, including the Steelers, who manhandled them last year and forced Jones to commit a career-high five turnovers in a loss.
    — James Boyd, New York Times, 15 May 2026
  • Those ramped up after Ottawa was completely manhandled by the Canes, and never held the lead at any point in the series.
    — Matt Reigle OutKick, FOXNews.com, 29 Apr. 2026
Definition of manhandled
Verb
  • The case claims Disney violated federal antitrust law and various state antitrust and consumer protection laws.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 4 July 2026
  • The nonprofit, which alleged the county violated the Surplus Lands Act by not first exploring affordable-housing development at the site, still has not dismissed its lawsuit.
    — Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 4 July 2026
Definition of violated
Verb
  • Children who once feared or mistreated animals begin to show care and leadership.
    — Patricia Huon, Christian Science Monitor, 30 June 2026
  • The sanctuary’s founder, Monika Kerber Perez, did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday but has previously denied that the animals were mistreated.
    — Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 June 2026
Definition of mistreated
Verb
  • Chris Brown was found liable by a Los Angeles jury on Tuesday for $13 million in the gruesome case of a dog that mauled and disfigured his housekeeper at his home in 2020.
    — Chris Willman, Variety, 1 July 2026
  • Florida officials have identified the woman who died after she was mauled by an alligator while swimming in a river with her boyfriend and best friend over the weekend, and 911 calls detail the desperate attempt to save her life.
    — Steven Yablonski, CBS News, 1 July 2026
Definition of mauled

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Cite this Entry

“Mishandled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mishandled. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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