Abusive
Definition, Meaning & Examples
Pronunciation /əˈbjuː.sɪv/ · Part of speech adjective
Quick meaning: Abusive is an adjective meaning Prone to treat someone badly by coarse, insulting words or other maltreatment; vituperative; reproachful; scurrilous.
Meaning
Prone to treat someone badly by coarse, insulting words or other maltreatment; vituperative; reproachful; scurrilous.
More Meanings
- Being physically or emotionally injurious; characterized by repeated violence or other abuse.
- Wrongly used; perverted; misapplied; unjust; illegal.
- (obsolete) Tending to deceive; fraudulent.
- (archaic) Tending to misuse; practising or containing abuse.
- (archaic) Catachrestic.
Example Sentences
an abusive treaty
the abusive prerogatives of his see
All they could ever do was to shout abusive inanities at me.
I am […]necessitated to use the word Parliament improperly, according to the abusive acceptation thereof.
Synonyms for abusive
Depending on context, synonyms include reproachful, scurrilous, opprobrious, insolent, insulting, injurious.
Antonyms for abusive
Common opposites include abuseless.
Related Words
Related dictionary entries include insulting, offensive, scurrilous, scornful, opprobrious, harmful.
Related Dictionary Tools
Sources & Attribution
FreeDictionaryAPI.com / Wiktionary · Original source · CC BY-SA 4.0
Dictionary data is provided by FreeDictionaryAPI.com and sourced from Wiktionary under its stated license.