Meanings
misuse1
plural misuses
- countableuncountableAn incorrect, improper or unlawful use of something.
The Queen may be celebrating her jubilee but the Queen's English Society, which has railed against the misuse and deterioration of the English language, is to fold.
2012 June 4, Lewis Smith, “Queen’s English Society says enuf is enough, innit?: Society formed 40 years ago to protect language against poor spelling and grammar closes because too few people care”, in The Guardian, London, archived from the original on 10 Mar 2016
misuse2
present singular third person misuses · participle present misusing · participle past misused · past misused · obsolete participle past misust · obsolete past misust
- transitiveTo use (something) incorrectly.First known use 14th c.
- transitiveTo rape (a woman); later more generally, to sexually abuse (someone).First known use 14th c.
“If that is true she would be the first case I have ever heard of, as most female captives are misused by the entire tribe.”
2013, Philipp Meyer, The Son, Simon & Schuster, published 2014, page 326Synonyms: abuse, outrage, violate, abuse, constuprate, defile, defoul, dishonour
- obsoletetransitiveTo abuse verbally, to insult.First known use 16th–17th c.
Socrates was brought upon the stage by Aristophanes, and misused to his face: but he laughed, as if it concerned him not […].
1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: […] John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition II, section 3, member 7
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo rape (a woman); later more generally, to sexually abuse (someone).
More synonyms by meaning
verbapply to a wrong thing or person; apply badly or incorrectly
verbchange the inherent purpose or function of something
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
Translations
Bulgarian злоупотреба, злоупотребявам
- злоупотреба (zloupotreba)incorrect, improper or unlawful use
- злоупотребявам (zloupotrebjavam)to use something incorrectly
- отнасям се лошо с (otnasjam se lošo s)to abuse or mistreat something or someone
- блудствам (bludstvam)to abuse sexually
Czech zneužití, zneužít
- zneužitíincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- zneužítto abuse or mistreat something or someone
Danish misbrug
- misbrugincorrect, improper or unlawful use
Esperanto misuzo, misuzi
- misuzoincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- misuzito use something incorrectly
Finnish väärinkäyttö, käyttää väärin
- väärinkäyttöincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- käyttää väärinto use something incorrectly
- väärinkäyttääto abuse or mistreat something or someone
- kohdella väärinto abuse or mistreat something or someone
- raiskatato abuse sexually
- väkisinmaatato abuse sexually
- käyttää hyväksito abuse sexually
French mésusage
- mésusageincorrect, improper or unlawful use
German Missbrauch, missbräuchliche Nutzung/Verwendung
- Missbrauchincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- missbräuchliche Nutzung/Verwendungincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- Fehlbedienungincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- Fehlgebrauchincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- Zweckentfremdungincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- missbrauchento use something incorrectly
- zweckentfremdento use something incorrectly
- missbrauchento abuse or mistreat something or someone
Greek κατάχρηση
- κατάχρηση (katáchrisi)incorrect, improper or unlawful use
Hindi दुरुपयोग, दुरुपयोग करना
- दुरुपयोग (durupyog)incorrect, improper or unlawful use
- दुरुपयोग करना (durupyog karnā)to abuse or mistreat something or someone
Hungarian visszaélés, visszaél
- visszaélésincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- visszaélto abuse or mistreat something or someone
Indonesian penyalahgunaan, menyalahgunakan
- penyalahgunaanincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- menyalahgunakanto use something incorrectly
Italian abuso, usare impropriamente
- abusoincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- usare impropriamenteto use something incorrectly
- abusareto abuse or mistreat something or someone
- abusareto abuse sexually
- stuprareto abuse sexually
- violentareto abuse sexually
Korean 오용
- 오용 (oyong)incorrect, improper or unlawful use
Latin abūtor
- abūtorto use something incorrectly
Malay salah guna
- salah gunaincorrect, improper or unlawful use
Māori raukoti
- raukotito abuse or mistreat something or someone
Norwegian Bokmål misbruk
- misbrukincorrect, improper or unlawful use
Polish nadużycie, nadużywać
- nadużycieincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- nadużywaćto use something incorrectly
- nadużyćto use something incorrectly
- nadużywaćto abuse or mistreat something or someone
- nadużyćto abuse or mistreat something or someone
- nadużywaćto abuse sexually
- nadużyćto abuse sexually
Russian злоупотребля́ть
- злоупотребля́ть (zloupotrebljátʹ)to use something incorrectly
Spanish mal uso, abusar
- mal usoincorrect, improper or unlawful use
- abusarto abuse or mistreat something or someone
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with misuse
Cite this entry
misuse. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misuse
“misuse.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misuse. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “misuse,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/misuse.
Source: misuse on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.