misuse n : improper or excessive use [syn: abuse]

1 apply to a wrong thing or person; apply badly or incorrectly; "The words are misapplied in this context"; "You are misapplying the name of this religious group" [syn: misapply]

2 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" [syn: pervert, abuse]

English

Pronunciation 1

• /mɪsˈjuːs/

Noun

1. An incorrect, improper or unlawful use of something.

Translations

Pronunciation 2

• /mɪsˈjuːz/

Verb

1. To use something incorrectly
2. To abuse or mistreat something or someone

Translations

abuse, active use, adulterate, adulteration, alloy, appliance, application, barbarism, befoul, befouling, bias, bleed, bleed white, canker, catachresis, cheapen, clerical error, coarsen, color, confound, consumption, contaminate, contamination, convert, corrigendum, corrupt, corruption, debase, debauch, defalcate, defile, defilement, deflower, degenerate, degrade, denature, deprave, desecrate, despoil, devalue, distort, diversion, divert, diverting, do amiss, drain, embezzle, employ, employment, envenoming, erratum, error, exercise, exertion, exploit, failure, false coloring, fault, faute, festering, foul, fouling, garble, good use, hard usage, hard use, human error, ill use, ill-treat, ill-use, impose upon, infect, infection, infelicity, make use of, maladminister, malapropism, maltreat, manipulate, milk, misapplication, misapply, misapprehension, misappropriate, misappropriation, miscalculation, miscall, miscarriage, miscite, misconception, misconduct, misconstruction, misconstrue, miscount, misdeal, misdirect, misdirection, misemploy, misemployment, misfield, mishandle, misidentification, misinterpret, misinterpretation, misjudgment, mismanage, misplay, misprint, misquotation, misquote, misread, misrender, misreport, misrepresent, misrepresentation, miss, misspell, misstatement, mistake, mistreat, mistreatment, misunderstanding, misusage, outrage, peculate, perversion, pervert, pilfer, play on, poison, poisoning, pollute, pollution, presume upon, profane, prostitute, prostitution, ravage, ravish, rough usage, slant, slanting, solecism, strain, straining, stroke, suck dry, suppuration, taint, take advantage of, torture, torturing, twist, typo, typographical error, ulcerate, usage, use, use ill, using up, varnish, violate, vitiate, vitiation, vulgarize, warp, work on, work upon, wrong use