maltreat

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English[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From mal- +‎ treat, after French maltraiter.

Pronunciation[edit]

Verb[edit]

maltreat (third-person singular simple present maltreats, present participle maltreating, simple past and past participle maltreated)

  1. To treat badly, to abuse. [from 18th c.]
    • 1977, Alistair Horne, A Savage War of Peace, New York: Review Books, published 2006, page 217:
      he received a telegram from the prime minister ordering that on no account were Yacef and Zohra Drif to be maltreated in any way.

Related terms[edit]

Translations[edit]