Child abuse is any act – or failure to act – by a parent, caregiver, or other responsible adult that causes, or seriously risks causing, physical, emotional, sexual, or developmental harm to a child.

Core definition (simple terms)

  • Child abuse means a child is hurt, used, or neglected by someone who has power or responsibility over them (like a parent, relative, teacher, or caregiver).
  • It can be something done to the child (an act, like hitting or sexually touching) or something not done (an omission, like not feeding or supervising them).
  • The key idea is: the child’s health, safety, development, or dignity is actually harmed or put at serious risk of harm.

A widely used public‑health definition says child abuse includes “all forms of physical and/or emotional ill‑treatment, sexual abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, or exploitation, resulting in actual or potential harm to the child’s health, survival, development or dignity in the context of a relationship of responsibility, trust or power.”

Main types of child abuse

Most laws and child‑protection agencies describe four or five main types.

  1. Physical abuse
    • Deliberate use of physical force that results in, or could result in, injury to a child (for example: hitting, punching, slapping, burning, shaking, biting, or using objects like belts or sticks).
 * It can be a single serious incident or a pattern over time.
  1. Sexual abuse
    • Any sexual activity with a child, including touching, penetration, or sexual acts, that the child cannot legally or developmentally consent to.
 * Also includes exposing a child to sexual content, involving them in pornography or prostitution, or coercing them to watch sexual acts.
  1. Emotional or psychological abuse
    • Persistent behaviours that damage a child’s emotional development or sense of self‑worth, such as constant criticism, humiliation, rejection, threats, or terrorizing.
 * Can also include extreme overprotectiveness, making love or attention conditional, ongoing exposure to serious family conflict or domestic violence.
  1. Neglect
    • Failing to provide for a child’s basic needs – like food, clothing, warmth, hygiene, medical care, education, supervision, or emotional support – to the point that their health or development is harmed or at serious risk.
 * Often described as “omission of care,” and can be physical (no food or safety) or emotional (no love or attention).
  1. Exploitation / other maltreatment
    • Using a child for someone else’s benefit, for example economic or commercial exploitation, forcing them to work in dangerous conditions, or using them in criminal activity.
 * Some frameworks explicitly include bullying and patterns of intimidation under emotional abuse or broader maltreatment.

Where and by whom it can happen

  • Abuse can happen in the home, at school, in institutions, in the community, or online.
  • The abuser is often someone known to the child (parent, caregiver, relative, teacher, coach), but it can also be a stranger or even another child.
  • When one child abuses another, many child‑protection systems treat it as a protection issue for both the victim and the child who is abusing.

Important clarifications

  • Different countries and laws phrase the definition slightly differently, but they nearly always cover physical, sexual, emotional abuse and neglect, plus exploitation.
  • Abuse does not have to leave visible marks; emotional abuse and neglect can cause deep, long‑term psychological and developmental harm.
  • Even “potential” harm matters: many legal definitions include situations where there is a substantial risk of serious harm, not only cases where serious injury has already happened.

If you’re asking for a personal reason

If you or someone you know might be experiencing behaviour that fits this description, it is important to talk to a trusted adult or a professional service (doctor, school counselor, local child‑protection or social service, or a helpline) in your country as soon as possible.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.