macabre

[ muh-kah-bruh, -kahb, -kah-ber ]

See synonyms for macabre on Thesaurus.com

adjective

gruesome and horrifying; ghastly; horrible.
of, pertaining to, dealing with, or representing death, especially its grimmer or uglier aspect.

of or suggestive of the allegorical dance of death.

Origin of macabre

First recorded in 1400–50; from French; compare late Middle English Macabrees daunce, from Middle French danse (de) Macabré, of uncertain origin; perhaps to be identified with Medieval Latin chorēa Machabaeōrum a representation of the deaths of Judas Maccabaeus and his brothers, but evidence is lacking; the French pronunciation with mute e is a misreading of the Middle French forms

Rarely ma·ca·ber .

Words Nearby macabre

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

How to use macabre in a sentence

Some accusations apparently even took a turn for the macabre.
Rodin, a Cadaver, and the Scandal That Nearly Derailed Him | Erin Zaleski | November 19, 2021 | The Daily Beast
For the most part, however, he just talks into a stiff, eerie silence, in a monologue that he seems to ad-lib or summon forth from a macabre collection of fables that exists only in his head.
One Good Thing: Knifepoint Horror, a collection of campfire ghost stories in podcast form | Aja Romano | October 29, 2021 | Vox
A few months later, he began doodling on his computer, drawing a lucha libre mask resembling Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, the rock ’n’ roll pioneer known for his operatic vocals and macabre stage antics.
This chemist is reimagining the discovery of materials using AI and automation | Simon Lewsen | October 27, 2021 | MIT Technology Review
In Pune, one of the worst-hit cities in India, the wailing sirens of ambulances have become a macabre feature of the city’s soundscape.
How India’s COVID-19 crisis became the worst in the world | Priyanka Runwal | May 9, 2021 | Science News
Later in the “Sinnerman” narrative, the game features yet another scene that makes excellent use of the first-person camera, using your eyes and hands to partake in this macabre, sacrilegious act of violence and media.
‘Cyberpunk 2077,’ three months later | Gene Park | March 12, 2021 | Washington Post

Given the somewhat macabre origins of the feast, many of the celebrations were designed to placate the gods.
New Year’s Eve, Babylon Style | Candida Moss | December 31, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
You two seem to have similar artistic sensibilities, both very interested in the macabre.
Tim Burton Talks ‘Big Eyes,’ His Taste For the Macabre, and the ‘Beetlejuice’ Sequel | Marlow Stern | December 17, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
After all, he was on television every week, telling macabre stories, frightening us.
Alfred Hitchcock’s Fade to Black: The Great Director’s Final Days | David Freeman | December 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
And in the summer months, when shootings soar, the city can be a ghoulish playground for those interested in the macabre.
Chicago’s Real-Life 'Nightcrawler' | Justin Glawe | November 14, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Over the past few years, macabre signs of vampire burials have been unearthed across Europe and even in the United States.
Bulgaria’s Vampire Graveyards | Nina Strochlic | October 15, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
For the significance of the French word macabre we must turn to the Arabic makabir, signifying a burial place or cemetery.
Descriptive Analyses of Piano Works | Edward Baxter Perry
"All over but the cheering," he replied with that strange, macabre humor which often comes to solace men about to die.
Astounding Stories, March, 1931 | Various
At Rouen in the aitre (atrium) or cloister of St Maclou there also remains a sculptured danse macabre.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 2 | Various
The Danse macabre itself is a subject which is well nigh exhaustless.
Essays in the Study of Folk-Songs (1886) | Countess Evelyn Martinengo-Cesaresco
Saint-Saëns has even utilized the barbarous xylophone, whose proper place is the variety hall, in his "Danse macabre."
How to Listen to Music, 7th ed. | Henry Edward Krehbiel

British Dictionary definitions for macabre

macabre

/ (məˈkɑːbə, -brə) /

adjective

gruesome; ghastly; grim
resembling or associated with the danse macabre

Origin of macabre

C15: from Old French danse macabre dance of death, probably from macabé relating to the Maccabees, who were associated with death because of the doctrines and prayers for the dead in II Macc. (12:43–46)

Derived forms of macabre

macabrely, adverb

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

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