euthanize
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Usage
What does euthanize mean? Euthanize means to painlessly put a person or animal to death. The decision to euthanize a person is usually made because they have a painful, incurable disease or condition which will cause them to die slowly and in great pain. Where it is legal, the dying person must consent to being euthanized and only a doctor or other permitted person is legally able to end that person’s life. With animals, the decision is usually left to the animal’s owner, with a veterinarian or other qualified person actually ending the animal’s life. Animals are also usually euthanized because they are in great pain that cannot be relieved any other way. Euthanize is also written as euthanatize. In British English, the spellings euthanise and euthanatise are also used. Example: A veterinarian sometimes has to euthanize an animal when they will otherwise suffer a painful death.
Etymology
Origin of euthanize
First recorded in 1960–65; euthan(asia) + -ize
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.
See Examples For:
He added that by the time the city made contact with state officials, the decision to euthanize was already made.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
Last year, that pack made headlines for an unprecedented number of livestock attacks — leading state wildlife officials to euthanize several members.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2026
He said it’s key for the agency to act quickly to move or euthanize a lion that’s feeding on sheep, to prevent it from harming more.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 10, 2025
Even with all her experience, Holmes said she struggled with the decision about when to euthanize her ailing elderly dog Gemios “a 20-pound fluff ball” who had been in her family for years.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2025
“My contact said the normal protocol would have been to euthanize the coyote on arrival. I think this is a good sign.”
From "Wayward Creatures" by Dayna Lorentz
State officials dispute that, saying bears are euthanized only in extreme circumstances such as after they’ve hurt someone or committed repeated break-ins.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
The writer-director’s 2022 feature debut, “Plan 75,” imagined an unsettling future in which the elderly are offered a subsidy by the government to be euthanized.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
A 25-year-old Spanish woman was euthanized last month by medical personnel on her request and with the approval of authorities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 6, 2026
On April 2, the agency captured and humanely euthanized the coyote responsible for the attacks.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 3, 2026
A theatergoer was called upon to play the vet who euthanized the narrator’s childhood pet, a dog named Indiana Bones that was symbolized by a coat someone volunteered from the audience.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 12, 2026
District Court judge denied an emergency application seeking to prevent the county from euthanizing Bruce, a 100-pound black and tan German shepherd mix.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Despite the wipeout infestations and mass euthanizing, Farm Action alleges the size of egg-laying flocks in 2025 are, on average, only about 5 percent smaller, on a month-to-month basis, than they were in 2021.
From Slate ● Apr. 18, 2025
“He got extra treats, critical care and veg today. And attention,” the vet said in an email announcing the plans for euthanizing him.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 13, 2023
They are sterilizing coyotes in the area and euthanizing coyote-wolf hybrids when they’re found.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 3, 2023
Even if they were euthanizing the animals, it didn’t add up.
From "Zeitoun" by Dave Eggers
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.
