Ask Difference

Harassment vs. Abuse — What's the Difference?

Harassment vs. Abuse — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Harassment and Abuse

ADVERTISEMENT

Compare with Definitions

Harassment

Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior that demeans, humiliates or embarrasses a person, and it is characteristically identified by its unlikelihood in terms of social and moral reasonableness.

Abuse

Abuse is the improper usage or treatment of a thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, crimes, or other types of aggression.

Harassment

To subject (another) to hostile or prejudicial remarks or actions; pressure or intimidate.

Abuse

To use improperly or excessively; misuse
Abuse alcohol.
Abuse a privilege.

Harassment

To irritate or torment persistently
His mind was harassed by doubts and misgivings.
ADVERTISEMENT

Abuse

To hurt or injure by maltreatment; ill-use
Animals that were abused by a negligent owner.

Harassment

To make repeated attacks or raids on (an enemy, for example).

Abuse

To force sexual activity on; rape or molest.

Harassment

Attacks and criticism causing worry and distress.

Abuse

To assail with insulting or hurtful words; revile.

Harassment

Pestering or intimidation.

Abuse

(Obsolete) To deceive or trick.

Harassment

(military) The use of repeated small-scale attacks to wear down an enemy force.

Abuse

Improper or excessive use; misuse
Abuse of authority.
Drug abuse.

Harassment

The act of harassing, or state of being harassed; worry; annoyance; anxiety.
Little harassments which I am led to suspect do occasionally molest the most fortunate.

Abuse

Rough treatment or use
Shoes that have taken a lot of abuse.

Harassment

A feeling of intense annoyance caused by being tormented;
So great was his harassment that he wanted to destroy his tormentors

Abuse

Physical maltreatment or violence
Spousal abuse.

Harassment

The act of tormenting by continued persistent attacks and criticism

Abuse

Sexual abuse.

Abuse

Insulting or hurtful language, especially when used to threaten or demoralize
Subjected her subordinates to verbal abuse.

Abuse

An unjust or wrongful practice
A government that commits abuses against its citizens.

Abuse

Improper treatment or usage; application to a wrong or bad purpose; an unjust, corrupt or wrongful practice or custom.
All abuse, whether physical, verbal, psychological or sexual, is bad.
Human rights abuses.

Abuse

Misuse; improper use; perversion.

Abuse

(obsolete) A delusion; an imposture; misrepresentation; deception.

Abuse

Coarse, insulting speech; abusive language; language that unjustly or angrily vilifies.

Abuse

Catachresis.

Abuse

Physical maltreatment; injury; cruel treatment.

Abuse

Violation; defilement; rape; forcing of undesired sexual activity by one person on another, often on a repeated basis.

Abuse

(transitive) To put to a wrong use; to misapply; to use improperly; to misuse; to use for a wrong purpose or end; to pervert
He abused his authority.

Abuse

(transitive) To injure; to maltreat; to hurt; to treat with cruelty, especially repeatedly.

Abuse

(transitive) To attack with coarse language; to insult; to revile; malign; to speak in an offensive manner to or about someone; to disparage.

Abuse

(transitive) To imbibe a drug for a purpose other than it was intended; to intentionally take more of a drug than was prescribed for recreational reasons; to take illegal drugs habitually.

Abuse

To violate; defile; to rape; (reflexive) to masturbate.

Abuse

Misrepresent; adulterate.

Abuse

To deceive; to trick; to impose on; misuse the confidence of.

Abuse

Disuse.

Abuse

To put to a wrong use; to misapply; to misuse; to put to a bad use; to use for a wrong purpose or end; to pervert; as, to abuse inherited gold; to make an excessive use of; as, to abuse one's authority.
This principle (if one may so abuse the word) shoots rapidly into popularity.

Abuse

To use ill; to maltreat; to act injuriously to; to punish or to tax excessively; to hurt; as, to abuse prisoners, to abuse one's powers, one's patience.

Abuse

To revile; to reproach coarsely; to disparage.
The . . . tellers of news abused the general.

Abuse

To dishonor.

Abuse

To violate; to ravish.

Abuse

To deceive; to impose on.
Their eyes red and staring, cozened with a moist cloud, and abused by a double object.

Abuse

Improper treatment or use; application to a wrong or bad purpose; misuse; as, an abuse of our natural powers; an abuse of civil rights, or of privileges or advantages; an abuse of language.
Liberty may be endangered by the abuses of liberty, as well as by the abuses of power.

Abuse

Physical ill treatment; injury.

Abuse

A corrupt practice or custom; offense; crime; fault; as, the abuses in the civil service.
Abuse after disappeared without a struggle..

Abuse

Vituperative words; coarse, insulting speech; abusive language; virulent condemnation; reviling.
The two parties, after exchanging a good deal of abuse, came to blows.

Abuse

Violation; rape; as, abuse of a female child.
Or is it some abuse, and no such thing?

Abuse

Cruel or inhumane treatment

Abuse

A rude expression intended to offend or hurt;
When a student made a stupid mistake he spared them no abuse
They yelled insults at the visiting team

Abuse

Improper or excessive use

Abuse

Treat badly;
This boss abuses his workers
She is always stepping on others to get ahead

Abuse

Change the inherent purpose or function of something;
Don't abuse the system
The director of the factory misused the funds intended for the health care of his workers

Abuse

Use foul or abusive language towards;
The actress abused the policeman who gave her a parking ticket
The angry mother shouted at the teacher

Share Your Discovery

Share via Social Media
Embed This Content
Embed Code
Share Directly via Messenger
Link
Previous Comparison
Glycerol vs. Glycine
Next Comparison
Great vs. Large

Popular Comparisons

Trending Comparisons

New Comparisons

Trending Terms