felo-de-se

[ fel-oh-di-see, -sey ]

/ ˈfɛl oʊ dɪˈsi, -ˈseɪ /

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noun, plural fe·lo·nes-de-se

[fel-uh-neez-di-see, -sey, fuh-loh-neez-], /ˈfɛl əˌniz dɪˈsi, -ˈseɪ, fəˈloʊ niz-/, fe·los-de-se

[fel-ohz-di-see, -sey]. /ˈfɛl oʊz dɪˈsi, -ˈseɪ/.

a person who intentionally takes their own life, or commits an unlawful malicious act resulting in their own death.

the act of suicide.

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Origin of felo-de-se

First recorded in 1650–60; from Anglo-Latin, equivalent to felō “a felon” + dē “in respect to, of” + sē “oneself”; see origin at felon¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use felo-de-se in a sentence

Or felo de se; for in a case of suicide the acquittal of the deceased by a coroner's jury entitles him to Christian burial.
Notes and Queries, Number 241, June 10, 1854|Various
Of course Mr. Wharton had employed counsel, and of course the counsel's object had been to avoid a verdict of felo de se.
The Prime Minister|Anthony Trollope
Is it not monstrous, then, that men could be found so lost to honor as to record a verdict of felo de se?
Secret History of the Court of England, from the Accession of George the Third to the Death of George the Fourth, Volume I (of 2)|Lady Anne Hamilton
Yet when the verdict of felo de se had been returned, there had been murmurs in Court, at once sharply checked by the coroner.
What Timmy Did|Marie Adelaide Belloc Lowndes

By such conduct—revealing a tendency to bad manners—she commits felo de se as regards—well—a certain object she has in view.
Moscow|Fred Whishaw

British Dictionary definitions for felo-de-se

felo de se

/ (ˈfiːləʊ dɪ ˈsiː, ˈfɛləʊ) /

noun plural felones de se (ˈfiːləʊˌniːz dɪ ˈsiː, ˈfɛl-) or felos de se

law

suicide
a person who commits suicide

Word Origin for felo de se

C17: from Anglo-Latin, from felō felon + Latin dē of + sē oneself

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