MUTILATION Synonyms: 41 Similar and Opposite Words

mutilation

noun

Definition of mutilation

as in mayhem

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of mutilation Several of the remains were face down with their hands and feet bound, while others discovered there showed signs of mutilation or decapitation. — Latoya Gayle, PEOPLE, 26 July 2026 Twenty-one-year-old Burke has been charged with the first-degree murder of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez, as well as lewd and lascivious acts with a 13-year-old, and mutilation of human remains. — Joy Press, Vanity Fair, 22 July 2026 The killings were engineered to terrify the remaining Poles into fleeing westward, so extensive documentation was spread of the accompanying torture and mutilation. — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 20 June 2026 Based on more than 430 testimonies, thousands of visual records, and years of investigation, the report details rape, torture, mutilation, forced nudity, and sexualized brutality carried out deliberately and systematically. — Rabbi Josh Weinberg, Sun Sentinel, 2 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for mutilation

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mutilation

Noun

After years of bootlegging, gambling, prostitution, and racketeering, Capone went down not for murder or mayhem but for failing to pay taxes.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Oct. 2026
Investigators have not released a motive for the mayhem, and autopsies were scheduled Tuesday for all three people.

— Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of mayhem

Noun

After the shooting, the internet lit up with macabre stories of death, disfigurement, and disability wrought by claim denials—DJs in clubs even spun dance music with Luigi’s face flashing behind them.

— Elizabeth Nicholas, Vanity Fair, 9 Sep. 2026
To my eye, Rouy’s strategy of disfigurement also owes a debt to Francis Bacon, except a portrait by that artist offers up a person as a specimen to the viewer, like a dead butterfly pinned to a collector board.

— David Lê, Curbed, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of disfigurement

Noun

Unlike Hamas, which deliberately targets Israeli civilians, the IDF takes all feasible precautions to mitigate harm to civilians and operates under a structured targeting framework designed to ensure the identification of lawful military objectives.

— Beth Bailey, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026
And this week, a group of eight states specifically sued OpenAI over consumer harms, Reuters reported.

— Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of harm

Noun

The ship’s 21 crew members were safely evacuated and no injuries were reported, according to the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore.

— Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2026
His injuries were deemed non-life-threatening, and police said he is being taken to a Dallas-area hospital for further treatment.

— Matthew Ablon, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of injury

Noun

During the 90-minute operation, a lobe of the pontiff's right lung that had a nodular lesion was removed, the Vatican said.

— Kerry Breen, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
In January, he was told that there were some signs of improvement in his lungs and that the lesions in his brain — which were being treated by an outside radiation oncologist — were disappearing.

— Trisha Thadani Kirsten Potter Tanya Pérez Devin Murphy, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026

Definition of lesion

Noun

This comes as the price of diesel fuel – used to power railroads and the trucking industry – has soared to record highs due to the crippling of refinery production as a result of the wars in Ukraine and Iran.

— Sean Conlon, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026
The 12-day barrage came on the back of a series of setbacks for Iran’s leaders, including the crippling of its regional allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

— Brian Bennett, Time, 28 Feb. 2026

Definition of crippling

Noun

In emails to the city, Open Doors emphasized that the organization provides services to people who experience disability conditions, including ones related to substance use and mental health.

— Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 18 Oct. 2026
Also exposed was information about student disabilities and student eligibility status for federal programs, such as those available to help students from low-income families.

— Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of disability

Noun

Studies have found that weight training may help preserve brain health and might even be linked to slight improvements in memory in patients with mild cognitive impairment (in addition to all its benefits for your bones).

— Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 14 Oct. 2026
The review describes cognitive and behavioral consequences that can include impairments in working memory, decision making and emotional regulation.

— Shahrzad Jalali, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of impairment

Browse Nearby Words

mutilating

mutilation

mutilations

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Mutilation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mutilation. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of mutilation

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

compunction

Popular in Grammar & Usage

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Games & Quizzes