maltreatment

/mælˈtritmɪnt/

/mælˈtritmənt/

Other forms: maltreatments

Maltreatment is what happens when a person (or animal) is abused or deliberately harmed. If you are concerned with the maltreatment of animals, circuses probably disturb you.

In the old days, some schoolchildren experienced maltreatment at the hands of their teachers, and while it happens less often today, many of them still deal with the maltreatment of playground bullies. Maltreatment of animals has been documented at large factory farms, and laws have been passed to protect them. Maltreatment adds the mal- prefix, meaning "badly," to treatment, "conduct toward someone."

Definitions of maltreatment

1. noun

   cruel or inhumane treatment
   synonyms: abuse, ill-treatment, ill-usage

   types:

   child abuse

   the physical or emotional or sexual mistreatment of children

   child neglect

   failure of caretakers to provide adequate emotional and physical care for a child

   persecution

   the act of persecuting (especially on the basis of race or religion)

   cruelty, inhuman treatment

   a cruel act; a deliberate infliction of pain and suffering

   impalement

   the act of piercing with a sharpened stake as a form of punishment or torture

   oppression, subjugation

   the act of subjugating by cruelty

   pogrom

   organized persecution of an ethnic group (especially Jews)

   rendition

   handing over prisoners to countries where torture is allowed

   torture, torturing

   the deliberate, systematic, or wanton infliction of physical or mental suffering by one or more persons in an attempt to force another person to yield information or to make a confession or for any other reason

   atrocity, inhumanity

   an act of atrocious cruelty

   type of:

   mistreatment

   the practice of treating (someone or something) badly