1
as in abused
to put to a bad or improper use
an actor who misused his considerable talent by appearing in too many lousy movies
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bullied
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
sadly misused by the people he had trusted
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of misused
Ice buckets in hotel rooms can carry germs if not used with a liner, as they've occasionally been misused in unsanitary ways.
—
Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 8 Jan. 2026
And, if federal officials determine a state has misused funds, they can be withheld, reduced or clawed back.
—Jillian Taylor, StateImpact, 6 Jan. 2026
Investigators have confirmed that both ChatGPT and Grok were misused as part of this campaign.
—Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 2 Jan. 2026
In November, Anthropic disclosed how its Claude Code agent had been misused to automate parts of a cyberattack.
—Thomas Şerban Von Davier, The Conversation, 29 Dec. 2025
Advertisement Framing hurtful words as honesty Honesty is essential in any relationship, but it can also be misused.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 26 Dec. 2025
And yet…even though GLP-1s are being misused by some people, others are finding immense relief and healing in their existence.
—Michelle Konstantinovsky, Glamour, 22 Dec. 2025
The company has faced criticism from some privacy advocates and community groups who worry that its networks of cameras are collecting too much personal information from private citizens and could be misused.
—Clare Duffy, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025
This embrace of democratized filmmaking essentially sets Miller apart from del Toro, who has voiced anxiety about AI being misused by the masses.
—Jake Kanter, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for misused
abused
Verb
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The suit alleges that Ham abused her repeatedly over a number of years, and that defendants knew of the abuse, but instead chose to prioritize reputational and financial interests over her safety.—
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Canty, a former special agent in charge of the SBI’s Charlotte region office, resigned from the Mecklenburg Sheriff’s Office in November 2024 and issued a letter then alleging that McFadden abused his powers.—
Cite this Entry
“Misused.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/misused. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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