killing
Americannoun
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the act of a person or thing that kills.
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the total game killed on a hunt.
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Informal. a quick and unusually large profit or financial gain.
We would all like to win the lottery or make a killing in the stock market.
adjective
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Tuberculosis was a killing disease well into the 20th century, and society found itself with few remedies.
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exhausting.
An ever-expanding workload is imperceptible at first, but eventually we're operating at a killing pace.
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Informal. irresistibly funny.
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Slang. very attractive or fascinating.
The actress is known for her outstanding beauty and killing smile.
adjective
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informal very tiring; exhausting
a killing pace
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informal extremely funny; hilarious
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causing death; fatal
noun
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the act of causing death; slaying
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informal a sudden stroke of success, usually financial, as in speculations on the stock market (esp in the phrase make a killing )
Other Word Forms
- killingly adverb
- self-killing adjective
- unkilling adjective
Etymology
Origin of killing
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English killing(e), kyllyng(e) (gerund); kill 1, -ing 1, -ing 2
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One anecdote from the report claims that when Patel traveled to Utah following the killing of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk, he “refused” to leave his plane without wearing an FBI raid jacket.
From Salon
The U.S. military may just be the world’s most lethal investing club, and it’s killing it in this bull market.
Yunus welcomed the commission's report, saying the nation had long remained in the dark about the reasons behind the 2009 killings.
From Barron's
Some Ukrainian officers say their drone forces need to give more priority to hitting Russian drone teams and logistics—mimicking Rubicon’s approach—rather than focusing mainly on killing Russian infantry.
Critics say the strikes amount to extrajudicial killings and are unnerving U.S. allies who are increasingly wary of sharing intelligence.
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.
