as in thrashing
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
1
as in abusing
to abuse physically
demonstrators who claimed that they had been mauled by the police
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in licking
to strike repeatedly
the irate store owner was mauling the shoplifter when the police showed up
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 mauling
Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
Mauigoa, a former five-star recruit, is big (6-6, 325), powerful, athletic and plays with a mauling mentality at the tackle position.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
The tragedy of the mauling death of Michael Millett III in a community with an alleged history of incidents involving dangerous dogs should serve as a reminder for anyone who witnesses or experiences a dog behaving aggressively to file a complaint with local animal control.
—Nicole R. Kurtz, Miami Herald, 18 Dec. 2025
When our conversation turned to bears, Sam explained that a person was more likely to survive a grizzly mauling than a black bear attack.
—William D. Brown, Outdoor Life, 13 Nov. 2025
Then, the detective hired to vaporize the homicidal mountain lion discovers the animal is getting a bum rap — the businessman had been murdered before the mauling began.
—Chris Hewitt, Boston Herald, 7 Nov. 2025
The Alameda County District Attorney’s Office this week unexpectedly dropped its case against a man charged in the 2024 fatal mauling of his good friend by three 100-pound dogs.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 26 Sep. 2025
Patton's son, who witnessed the mauling, found his father being attacked by a yearling male black bear weighing about 70 pounds.
—Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 5 Sep. 2025
Fears about dog attacks surged after the 2023 fatal mauling of a four-year-old boy in Hyderabad, an attack captured on CCTV that horrified the nation and sent shockwaves through media and political circles, sparking a frantic search for solutions.
—Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2025
Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026
City enters Week 2 of the new campaign as Premier League leader after mauling its way to a 4-0 win over Wolves on opening weekend.
—Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Aug. 2025
Noun
To this day, as much fun as Johnson has with his offensive artistry, little gets his blood pumping like bringing a mauling running game to life.
—Verb
Or left tackle Theo Benedet pulling into the open field in Cincinnati, sprinting well beyond the line of scrimmage, starting his block on Geno Stone 4 yards from the sideline, then mauling the Bengals safety within inches of a bench.
—Recent Examples of Synonyms for mauling
Noun
-
The 61-point win was UT's most-lopsided victory in a Big 12 or SEC game, besting a 90-39 thrashing of Texas Tech in 2018.—
-
The 6-0 thrashing was highlighted by a blitz of three goals in the span of 76 seconds, the latter two lamp-lighters coming just nine ticks apart.—
Verb
-
The pair also pretended that Tammy was allegedly abusing them.—
-
Archbishop Mitty product and San Jose native Aaron Gordon scored 18 while abusing Podziemski and other Warriors guards in the low post.—
Verb
-
Other photos showed Owen proudly licking the faces of his owners and getting some hugs and pats from the reality star, her husband and children.—
-
The Chocolate Brownie Batter flavor was my first try, mostly because any brand that claims something tastes like licking brownie batter off the spoon must be challenged.—
Noun
-
Good's defenders – including city and state leaders – are calling what happened an unjustified attack; federal authorities say the agent was acting in self-defense.—
-
In Kyiv, a CNN reporter said that the attack began around midnight, starting with multiple drone strikes on residential buildings.—
Verb
-
Obstructing, impeding, or attacking federal law enforcement is a federal crime.—
-
What now is the difference between the United States attacking Venezuela in order to install new leadership and Russia invading Ukraine to effect annexation and leadership change?—
Verb
-
Russia has been pounding Ukraine’s energy infrastructure with drones and missiles in recent weeks, a tactic used in previous winters.—
-
But those massive events aren’t the only way for fans to experience the heart-pounding thrills and sense of community that only live sports can deliver.—
Noun
-
Federal officials have said agents, including those part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, are seeing increases in assaults and threats against them.—
-
However, after his conviction on assault and harassment charges, Marvel dropped him from future projects.—
Verb
-
That’s exactly how the Miami Dolphins performed in Sunday’s 30-13 win against the Buffalo Bills in a contest Miami controlled all game, manhandling the reigning AFC East division champions to prove that the 2025 season isn’t over.—
-
But even with Mizzou being able to do what it’s been doing — manhandling the trenches and milking the clock — the results were somewhat spoiled.—
Cite this Entry
“Mauling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mauling. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share