Meaning & use
maul
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To attack and wound a person or animal badly by tearing the flesh with claws or teeth.
Grammar: Takes an object and is often passive: He was mauled by a bear.
Patterns
- be mauled by something
- maul someone
A hiker was badly mauled by a bear in the national park.
The dog mauled the postman's leg before its owner could pull it away.
Zookeepers were warned that the tiger might maul anyone who entered the pen.
verbtransitive
To handle roughly, so that something is damaged or someone is pushed about harshly.
Grammar: Takes an object: fans mauled the singer.
Patterns
- maul someone
- maul something
Fans nearly mauled the actor as he left the theater.
The kitten mauled the ball of wool into a tangle.
Players were mauled by the defense in the first half.
verbtransitivefigurative
To criticize or defeat someone very harshly in a public contest, review or debate.
Grammar: Usually passive in news writing: The film was mauled by critics.
Patterns
- be mauled by someone
- maul someone in something
The new play was mauled by critics on opening night.
The prime minister was mauled in the interview.
Our team was mauled 40 to 3 in the final.
Word forms
| third person singular | mauls |
|---|---|
| past tense | mauled |
| past participle | mauled |
| -ing form | mauling |
Common combinations
- mauled by a bear
- The camper was mauled by a bear and airlifted to hospital.
- badly mauled
- The farmer found his sheep badly mauled in the field.
- mauled to death
- The rancher feared that the calf had been mauled to death by wolves.
- mauled by critics
- The sequel was mauled by critics and ignored by audiences.
- mauling incident
- After the mauling incident, the park closed the trail.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mangle
- Mangle focuses on crushing and twisting something out of shape, but it does not require an animal attacker.
- savage
- Savage suggests a fierce, wild attack and is also used for brutal criticism, so it is close in tone to maul.
- maltreat
- Maltreat is formal and means treat badly over time, without the sudden tearing violence of maul.
- batter
- Batter means to strike again and again, whereas maul normally implies clawing or tearing.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: maul or mall?
maul vs mall
A mall is a shopping center, while to maul is to attack savagely; the words are homophones in many accents.
Practice
The reviewers were ______ the new movie, calling it dull and badly written.
Choose one answer.
Mauling means attacking harshly, which fits critics calling a film dull. Praising, approving and rewarding are positive and contradict the criticism.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “maul”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.