WotD: Gaslight (verb)
One person will gaslight another by trying to make them believe something that is not true. It’s a type of psychological abuse. Yes, it can be used as a verb.
There are numerous examples of kidnapped people being gaslighted.
I can remember an incident in Japan; I think it was in Saitama, in which a young man kidnapped a girl and told her that her parents did not want her anymore.
He kept her as a prisoner in his apartment for around two years.
Nobody knew where she was or if she was still alive.
It was after she managed to escape that everything came to light.
By telling her repeatedly that her parents did not want her, he was gaslighting her and trying to make her believe he was the only one who wanted her around.
As I said earlier, it’s psychological abuse.