Certainly, words can be as abusive as any blow.... When a three-year-old yells, "You're so stupid! What a dummy!" it doesn't carry the same weight as when a mother yells those words to a child.... Even if you don't physically abuse young children, you can still drive them nuts with your words.

American Mom: Motherhood, Politics, and Humble Pie (ed. Simon and Schuster, 1995) - ISBN: 9780671535209