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Definition of abusive adjective from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

abusive

adjective
 
/əˈbjuːsɪv/
 
/əˈbjuːsɪv/
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  1. (of speech or of a person) rude and offensive; criticizing rudely and unfairly
    • abusive language/remarks
    • He became abusive when he was drunk.
    • She was fined for making abusive comments to the referee.
    Topics Personal qualitiesc2
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • become
    • get
    adverb
    • extremely
    • very
    • rather
    See full entry
  2. (of behaviour) involving violence
    • an abusive relationship
    • emotionally/physically/sexually abusive
    Oxford Collocations Dictionaryverbs
    • be
    • become
    • get
    adverb
    • extremely
    • very
    • rather
    See full entry
  3. involving the use of power or knowledge unfairly or wrongly
    • the abusive practices of some businesses
See abusive in the Oxford Advanced American DictionarySee abusive in the Oxford Learner's Dictionary of Academic English
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