to murder, as by suffocation, so as to leave no or few marks of violence.
to suppress or get rid of by some indirect maneuver.
Billie Mary William Ethelbert Appleton Burke, 1886–1970, U.S. actress.
Edmund, 1729–97, Irish statesman, orator, and writer.
Kenneth Duva 1897–1993, U.S. literary critic.
Edmund . 1729–97, British Whig statesman, conservative political theorist, and orator, born in Ireland: defended parliamentary government and campaigned for a more liberal treatment of the American colonies; denounced the French Revolution
Robert O'Hara . 1820–61, Irish explorer, who led the first expedition (1860–61) across Australia from south to north. He was accompanied by W. J. Wills, George Grey, and John King; King alone survived the return journey
William . 1792–1829, Irish murderer and body snatcher; associate of William Hare
to murder in such a way as to leave no marks on the body, usually by suffocation
to get rid of, silence, or suppress
After W. Burke, hanged in 1829 in Edinburgh for murders of this kind
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
BURKE: People will think this is a book about, you know, going to the Golden Globes and meeting a bunch of celebrities, and a bunch of powerful men whose lives were impacted by #MeToo.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2021
BURKE: Over time it became clear to me that whatever I’m supposed to do, whatever this assignment is that I’ve been given, it’s clearly an assignment for ME.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2021
BURKE: I was very worried about Kaia’s self-esteem.
From Seattle Times • Sep. 15, 2021
BURKE: And the different—the different weaves for each group .
From The New Yorker • Feb. 25, 2019
When BURKE, the wisest statesman England ever had, rose to speak, the House of Commons was depopulated as upon an agreed signal.
From Morals and Dogma of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry by Pike, Albert
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
