Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To treat unkindly or harshly. synonym: abuse.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb to treat someone or something badly or unkindly; to abuse or mistreat

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From ill- +‎ treat.

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Examples

  • He knew the power in his muscles, and he knew the tricks and turns by which men use their bodies to ill-treat men.

    THE HOBO AND THE FAIRY 2010

  • They published and spread distorted stories from the beginning, tarnishing the image of Sri Lankan Sinhalese community saying they ill-treat Tamil people, which is a big fat lie.

    Global Voices in English » Sri Lanka: Bloggers react to the death of the LTTE leader 2009

  • Neither returned repeated calls from NPR, but in another interview, Sykes justified the Shariah amendment this way: State Senator ANTHONY SYKES Republican, Oklahoma: They certainly don't respect equal treatment regardless of gender in Shariah law, and are very abusive and very - just downright ill-treat women as unequal citizens in Shariah law.

    Oklahoma's Anti-Shariah Law Put On Hold -- For Now 2010

  • Neither returned repeated calls from NPR, but in another interview, Sykes justified the Shariah amendment this way: State Senator ANTHONY SYKES Republican, Oklahoma: They certainly don't respect equal treatment regardless of gender in Shariah law, and are very abusive and very - just downright ill-treat women as unequal citizens in Shariah law.

    Oklahoma's Anti-Shariah Law Put On Hold -- For Now 2010

  • 'Mrs Benchmark says that Mr Grantchester, who is another of our patrons, was instructing four other men to ill-treat you.'

    They didn’t read Pitchfork or Stereogum or Gorilla vs. Bear or Hipster Runoff Josh Spilker 2010

  • I expect I will tell him so, one of these days, when he is a little less ready to believe I mean to ill-treat you.

    Shameless KAREN ROBARDS 2010

  • At the end of the legal argument preceding Ahmed's trial, the judge rejected a bid by his lawyers to have the trial scrapped over Britain's alleged role in his mistreatment, stating in an "open" version of his judgment: "I am not satisfied that the British authorities assisted or encouraged the Pakistanis to unlawfully detain and/or ill-treat Rangzieb Ahmed in such a way as to amount to an abuse of the process of the court."

    Rangzieb Ahmed to appeal terrorism conviction 2010

  • I expect I will tell him so, one of these days, when he is a little less ready to believe I mean to ill-treat you.

    Shameless KAREN ROBARDS 2010

  • Immigrants in Spain are getting a raw deal from state institutions and at the same time from small and medium business owners, who not only take unfair advantage of them, but sometimes also physically ill-treat them.

    Crossover Dreams: The economic rain in Spain falls heavily on immigrants 2009

  • The book also shows that not only the Saudi regime and its religious fanatic establishment are oppressive, but also other groups in society: Saudi men oppress and ill-treat women, and Saudi men and women oppress and abuse foreigners.

    On Thursday, the Legg report will be published along with... 2009

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