maul /mɔːl $ mɒːl/ BrE AmE verb [transitive]
[ Date: 1300-1400 ; Origin: maul 'hammer' (13-20 centuries) , from Old French mail , from Latin malleus ]
1 . if an animal mauls someone, it injures them badly by tearing their flesh:
A mentally ill man was mauled after climbing into the lions’ enclosure at London Zoo.
2 . to strongly criticize something, especially a new book, play etc:
Her latest book was absolutely mauled by the critics.
3 . to touch someone in a rough sexual way which they think is unpleasant:
What makes you think you’ve got the right to maul me like that?
4 . informal to defeat someone very easily – used especially in sports reports:
Stanford have looked quite good lately. They absolutely mauled Notre Dame last weekend.
—mauling noun [singular] :
Brown got a mauling over the government’s failure to fulfil its promises.