butchery

[boo ch-uh-ree]

See more synonyms for butchery on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural butch·er·ies.

a slaughterhouse.
brutal or wanton slaughter of animals or humans; carnage.
the trade or business of a butcher.

the act of bungling or botching.

Origin of butchery

1300–50; Middle English bocherie < Anglo-French, Middle French boucherie. See butcher, -y³

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for butchery

Contemporary Examples

He was the first diplomat on the scene to witness the butchery in Sabra and Shatila in September 1982.
30 Years After the Beirut Bombing We Have Learned Nothing
Christopher Dickey
October 23, 2013
At best, he and other dictators will draw the lesson that they need to commit their butchery in other ways.
Obama Decision on Syria Good for U.S Democracy, but His Case Is Weak
Peter Beinart
September 3, 2013
The Daily Beast: In the 1920s, Chaim Soutine riffed on Rembrandt's butchery.
Oil Paint, Dry-Aged and Beefy
Blake Gopnik
June 28, 2013
None of which would pardon nor condone the butchery he is said to have unleashed.
Michael Ware on Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, Accused of Killing Afghan Civilians
Michael Ware
March 20, 2012

Historical Examples

And those who had laid their hands to deeds of butchery went as exiles to the Lacedaemonians.
Hellenica
Xenophon
But some there were in that crowd that would be no passive witnesses of this butchery.
Love-at-Arms
Raphael Sabatini
Du Sang stood in no need of the butchery; the escape could have been made without it.
Whispering Smith
Frank H. Spearman
At that time the Sultan had just completed the butchery of many Armenians.
The Blot on the Kaiser's 'Scutcheon
Newell Dwight Hillis
You have heard of Brayne's last experiment in butchery, I suppose?
The Innocence of Father Brown
G. K. Chesterton

British Dictionary definitions for butchery

butchery

noun plural -eries

the business or work of a butcher
wanton and indiscriminate slaughter; carnage
a less common word for slaughterhouse

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for butchery

n.

"the trade of a butcher," mid-15c., bocherie, from Old French bocherie (13c., Modern French boucherie), from bochier (see butcher (n.)).

butchery

Origin of .css-1fxfie5{font-size:22px;}@media (max-width:768px){.css-1fxfie5{font-size:18px;margin:0 10px 10px 0;word-break:break-all;word-wrap:break-word;-webkit-hyphens:auto;-moz-hyphens:auto;-ms-hyphens:auto;hyphens:auto;line-height:22px;}}butchery

Examples from the Web for butchery

Contemporary Examples

He was the first diplomat on the scene to witness the butchery in Sabra and Shatila in September 1982.

At best, he and other dictators will draw the lesson that they need to commit their butchery in other ways.

The Daily Beast: In the 1920s, Chaim Soutine riffed on Rembrandt's butchery.

None of which would pardon nor condone the butchery he is said to have unleashed.

Historical Examples

And those who had laid their hands to deeds of butchery went as exiles to the Lacedaemonians.

But some there were in that crowd that would be no passive witnesses of this butchery.

Du Sang stood in no need of the butchery; the escape could have been made without it.

At that time the Sultan had just completed the butchery of many Armenians.

You have heard of Brayne's last experiment in butchery, I suppose?

butchery

Word Origin and History for butchery

n.

Origin of butchery