Idiom idiom
abuse of distress
Meaning
a wrongful using of an animal or chattel distrained, by the distrainer
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“The landlord committed an abuse of distress by using the seized furniture.”
“Because the creditor used the horse he had taken as security, the court ruled that he was guilty of an abuse of distress.”
“The legal claim centered on the defendant's abuse of distress, as he had actively employed the impounded machinery for his own profit while the debt remained unpaid.”
Anchors to
Last updated August 10, 2026