misuse

Main Entry:
misuse [n. mis-yoos; v. mis-yooz]
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: abuse; wrong application
Synonyms: abusage, barbarism, catachresis, corruption, cruel treatment, desecration, dissipation, exploitation, harm, ill-treatment, injury, malapropism, maltreatment, misapplication, misemployment, mistreatment, misusage, perversion, profanation, prostitution, rough handling, solecism, squandering, waste
Notes: abuse carries with it some sense of harm; misuse refers to an incorrect use that may not lead to harm
to misuse is to use something wrongly, to abuse is to misuse something so badly that you damage it
Concept Thesaurus
Concept: Misuse.
Category: 2. Subservience to ends; precursory measures
Synonyms:
-nouns
misuse, misusage, misemployment, misapplication, misappropriation., abuse, profanation, prostitution, desecration; waste.
-verbs
misuse, misemploy, misapply, misappropriate., desecrate, abuse, profane, prostitute: waste [more]; overtask, overtax, overwork: squander [more]., cut blocks with a razor, employ a steam engine to crack a nut; catch at a straw.
-adjectives
misused.
-phrases
ludere cum sacris.
Antonyms: use
Browse Concept Index »
Main Entry: abuse
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: wrong use
Synonyms: corruption, crime, debasement, delinquency, desecration, exploitation, fault, injustice, misapplication, misconduct, misdeed, mishandling, mismanage, misuse, offense, perversion, prostitution, sin, wrong, wrongdoing
Notes: abuse carries with it some sense of harm; misuse refers to an incorrect use that may not lead to harm
to misuse is to use something wrongly, to abuse is to misuse something so badly that you damage it
Main Entry: abuse
Part of Speech: verb
Definition: physically hurt or injure
Synonyms: bang up, beat up, bung up, corrupt, cut up, damage, defile, deprave, desecrate, harm, hose, ill-treat, impair, maltreat, mar, mess up*, mishandle, mistreat, misuse, molest, oppress, persecute, pollute, rough up, roughhouse, ruin, shake up, spoil, taint, total*, victimize, violate, wax
Notes: abuse carries with it some sense of harm; misuse refers to an incorrect use that may not lead to harm
to misuse is to use something wrongly, to abuse is to misuse something so badly that you damage it
Antonyms: cherish, defend, help, preserve, protect, respect
Main Entry: abuse
Part of Speech: verb
Definition: use wrongly
Synonyms: dissipate, exhaust, misemploy, mishandle, misuse, overburden, overtax, overwork, prostitute, spoil, squander, taint, waste
Notes: abuse carries with it some sense of harm; misuse refers to an incorrect use that may not lead to harm
to misuse is to use something wrongly, to abuse is to misuse something so badly that you damage it
Antonyms: benefit, care for, esteem, prize, respect, revere
Main Entry: barbarism
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: crudity, savagery, especially in speech
Synonyms: atrocity, barbarity, brutality, catachresis, coarseness, corruption, cruelty, impropriety, inhumanity, localism, malapropism, misusage, misuse, primitive culture, provincialism, solecism, uncivilizedness, vernacularism, vernacularity, vulgarism
Antonyms: kindness, praise
Main Entry: consumption
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: devouring; use
Synonyms: burning, consuming, damage, decay, decrease, depletion, desolation, destruction, devastation, diminution, dispersion, dissipation, drinking, eating, exhaustion, expenditure, loss, misuse, ruin, swallowing, using up, utilization, waste, wear and tear
Antonyms: fasting, starvation
Main Entry: corrupt
Part of Speech: verb
Definition: pervert; pollute
Synonyms: abase, abuse, adulterate, animalize, bastardize, blemish, blight, bribe, contaminate, damage, debase, debauch, decay, decompose, deface, defile, deform, degrade, demean, demoralize, deprave, depreciate, despoil, disfigure, disgrace, dishonor, fix, grease palm, harm, hurt, ill-treat, impair, infect, injure, lower, lure, maltreat, mar, mistreat, misuse, outrage, pull down, putrefy, ravage, reduce, rot, ruin, spoil, square, stain, suborn, subvert, taint, undermine, violate, vitiate, warp, waste
Antonyms: better, chasten, cleanse, dignify, improve, purify
Main Entry: dissipate
Part of Speech: verb
Definition: expend, spend
Synonyms: be wasteful with, blow*, burn up, consume, deplete, dump*, fritter away, indulge oneself, kiss goodbye, lavish, misspend, misuse, run through, squander, throw away, trifle away, use up, waste
Antonyms: accumulate, collect, gather, hoard, save
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