Other forms: abuses
Abuse is cruel or violent treatment, or wrong use of something. Child abuse, abuse of power, substance abuse.
The two senses share the idea of using something in a way it was never meant for — a position, a substance, a person. Abuse of any kind is a crime when it is done to a person, and help is available: in the United Kingdom the police and the NSPCC both take reports. Note the stressed noun and verb.
1nounabuseCruel or violent treatment of a person.
“The charity helps children who have suffered abuse at home.”
2nounwrongThe wrong use of something.
“Using the company car for family holidays was an abuse of his position.”
abuse is a wrong treatment or use.
Latin abusus comes from abuti, to use up or misuse — ab, away, plus uti, to use.
Latin
abūsus — misused, using up
Old French
abus — improper use
Middle English
abusen
English, today
abuse
Built from
From Middle English abusen, then from either Old French abus (“improper use”), or from Latin abūsus (“misused, using up”), perfect active participle of abūtor (“make improper use of, consume, abuse”), from ab (“away”) + ūtor (“to use”). Equivalent to ab + use.
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA