See Also: Abuse(medicine)
ABUSE(law)
self-abuse(dictionary)
abuse(1)(dictionary)
abuse(2)(dictionary)
self-abuse(dictionary)
Alcohol abuse(health)
Elder Abuse(law)
Elder abuse(health)
child abuse(encyclopedia)

abuse(1) (iou)



abuse noun. LME.
[Old & mod. French abus or Latin abusus, formed as ABUSE verb.]
An improper usage; a corrupt practice. LME.
W. R. Inge Dickens was careful to castigate abuses which were being reformed.
Improper use, perversion, (of). M16.
drug abuse etc.
J. Collier The abuse of a thing is no argument against the use of it.
b. Rhetoric. Catachresis. Now rare or obsolete. L16.
An imposture; a delusion. M16-M17.
Shakespeare Hamlet Or is it some abuse, and no such thing?
Reviling; abusive language. Formerly also, a verbal insult. M16.
R. Dahl A torrent of abuse and obscenity as he had never heard before.
Injury, maltreatment. L16.
child abuse etc.
Violation; defilement. Now only in self-abuse. L16.
abuseful adjective full of abuse, abusive E17-E18.
abusefully adverb in an abusive manner M16.