homicide
Americannoun
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the killing of a human being by another person
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a person who kills another
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of homicide
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin homicīdium “a killing,” homicīda “killer,” equivalent to homi- (combining form of homō “man”) + -cīdium, -cīda, noun suffix; see -cide
Explanation
The noun homicide means a murder. If you kill another person, you are committing a homicide. The level of the homicide is legally defined as murder if the act was intentional and as manslaughter if it was unintentional. Remember the meaning of homicide by remembering that cide, from the Latin cida, refers to killing, while the Latin homo means "man.” So homicide means “killing a man.” You can see another example in this quote from Oliver Wendell Holmes: “Life and language are alike sacred. Homicide and verbicide — that is, violent treatment of a word with fatal results to its legitimate meaning, which is its life — are alike forbidden.”
Vocabulary lists containing homicide
Tears of a Tiger
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Latin Love, Vol II: cadere
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And Then There Were None
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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.
While the homicide rate has decreased, Honduras still has the second-highest homicide rate in the Americas, according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
"The homicide theory does not hold up," said his lawyer, Cristóbal Martell.
From BBC • May 20, 2026
Director Margaret Brown follows up her superb four-part series from last year, about a multiple homicide in Texas in 1991, with a fifth episode on the subsequent solving of the crime.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 19, 2026
Ghobadi has worked on 21 homicide trials and more than 1,500 preliminary hearings.
From Los Angeles Times • May 1, 2026
From 1991 to 2001, the homicide rate among young black men—who were disproportionately represented among crack dealers—fell 48 percent, compared to 30 percent for older black men and older white men.
From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt
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.
