macabre

[ muh-kah-bruh, -kahb, -kah-ber ]
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adjective
  1. gruesome and horrifying; ghastly; horrible.

  2. of, pertaining to, dealing with, or representing death, especially its grimmer or uglier aspect.

  1. of or suggestive of the allegorical dance of death.

Origin of macabre

1
First recorded in 1400–50; from French; compare late Middle English Macabrees daunce, from Middle French danse (de) Macabré, of uncertain origin; perhaps to be identified with Medieval Latin chorēa Machabaeōrum a representation of the deaths of Judas Maccabaeus and his brothers, but evidence is lacking; the French pronunciation with mute e is a misreading of the Middle French forms
  • Rarely ma·ca·ber .

Words Nearby macabre

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How to use macabre in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for macabre

macabre

/ (məˈkɑːbə, -brə) /


adjective
  1. gruesome; ghastly; grim

  2. resembling or associated with the danse macabre

Origin of macabre

1
C15: from Old French danse macabre dance of death, probably from macabé relating to the Maccabees, who were associated with death because of the doctrines and prayers for the dead in II Macc. (12:43–46)

Derived forms of macabre

  • macabrely, adverb

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