filicide

[fil-uh-sahyd]

noun

1. a person who kills their own child.

2. the act of killing one's child.

   Ancient myth contains numerous examples of filicide.

filicide

/ ˈfɪlɪˌsaɪd /

noun

1. the act of killing one's own son or daughter

2. a person who does this

Other Word Forms

• filicidal adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of filicide¹

First recorded in 1655–65; from Latin fīli(us) “son” ( fīli(a) “daughter”) + -cide

Word History and Origins

Origin of filicide¹

C17: from Latin fīlius son or fīlia daughter + _-cide

Example Sentences

It’s the ultimate “How could she?” play in the Western canon, a mother driven to the horrendous act of filicide as spiteful revenge on a blithely unfaithful husband.

Read more on Washington Post

Podcasters, reporters and TV producers rushed to South Carolina to tell a Shakespearean story of filicide, anchored by a main character whose button-down shirts seem to cover a terrifying moral void.

Read more on New York Times

Crimes of the Future Rated R for filicide, surgeries and power-drill violence.

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While the motivations behind filicide are complex, Ms. Reece believes it most likely involves a desire for spousal revenge.

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There is jealousy, passion and brutal filicide, all followed by eternal haunting.

Read more on Los Angeles Times