murder
Law. the killing of another human being under conditions specifically covered in law. In the U.S., special statutory definitions include murder committed with malice aforethought, characterized by deliberation or premeditation or occurring during the commission of another serious crime, as robbery or arson (first-degree murder, ormurder one ), and murder by intent but without deliberation or premeditation (second-degree murder, ormurder two ).
Slang. something extremely difficult or perilous: That final exam was murder!
a group or flock of crows.
Law. to kill by an act constituting murder.
to kill or slaughter inhumanly or barbarously.
to spoil or mar by bad performance, representation, pronunciation, etc.: The tenor murdered the aria.
to commit murder.
Idioms about murder
get away with murder, Informal. to engage in a deplorable activity without incurring harm or punishment: The new baby-sitter lets the kids get away with murder.
murder will out, a secret will eventually be exposed.
yell / scream bloody murder,
to scream loudly in pain, fear, etc.
to protest loudly and angrily: If I don't get a good raise I'm going to yell bloody murder.
Origin of murder
1synonym study For murder
Other words from murder
- self-murder, noun
- self-murdered, adjective
Words that may be confused with murder
- 1. homicide, manslaughter, murder
- 2. execute, kill1, murder (see synonym study at kill1)
Words Nearby murder
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use murder in a sentence
The group also urged Baja California lawmakers to add a formal recognition of murder based on gender identity to the state’s Penal Code.
Tijuana authorities criticized over handling of transgender woman’s murder | Michael K. Lavers | September 17, 2020 | Washington BladeInstead, she urged prosecutors to give LeBlond a chance to confess to the murder and accept responsibility, WTOP reported.
Md. man charged in 2015 trans murder sentenced to 35 years | Lou Chibbaro Jr. | September 17, 2020 | Washington BladeObviously this is useful in the countries, such as Brazil, where murder rates are about five times the global average and crime has been seen as a major problem in the society.
Podcast: COVID-19 is helping turn Brazil into a surveillance state | Anthony Green | September 16, 2020 | MIT Technology ReviewThey started an advertising agency that focused on the luxury fashion world, but after the murder of Trayvon Martin they decided to move into the social justice space.
‘Antebellum’ explores truths of our ugly past | Brian T. Carney | September 16, 2020 | Washington BladeHe was also accused of attempted murder, and even had milk dumped on him.
The website murder Inna Dancehall catalogs 207 dancehall songs with violently anti-gay lyrics.
How Maurice Tomlinson Was Outed in Jamaica—and Forced Into Exile | Jay Michaelson | December 9, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTmurder, suicide, illness, old age: These deaths stalk us all, but in prison, they collect us so much more cheaply.
On rival CBS, which had been the original home of The Twilight Zone, the long running murder, She Wrote premiered in 1984.
How a War-Weary Vet Created ‘The Twilight Zone’ | Rich Goldstein | November 13, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTmurder, violent crime, unemployment, and taxes all rose dramatically under his stewardship.
The Ugly Truth About Cory Booker, New Jersey’s Golden Boy | Olivia Nuzzi | October 20, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTHow to Get Away With a Hollywood murder By Tim Teeman The director William Desmond Taylor was shot dead, notoriously, in 1922.
8 Must-Read Stories of Ebola, Glaciers and Orgasms: The Best of The Beast | William Boot | October 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTmurder by the hypodermic needle, no doubt, would escape detection often enough were it not for circumstances.
murder, rape, arson, and a host of other atrocities are often the first evidence of a diseased brain.
Ancient Faiths And Modern | Thomas Inman"I think I know who committed the Daffodil murder," he said steadily.
The Daffodil Mystery | Edgar Wallacemurder is ghastly enough, in whatever shape it meets us, and from whatever cause.
The Arena | VariousWhat a dickens is the Woman always a whimpring about murder for?
The Beggar's Opera | John Gay
British Dictionary definitions for murder
/ (ˈmɜːdə) /
the unlawful premeditated killing of one human being by another: Compare manslaughter, homicide
informal something dangerous, difficult, or unpleasant: driving around London is murder
cry blue murder informal to make an outcry
get away with murder informal to escape censure; do as one pleases
(also intr) to kill (someone) unlawfully with premeditation or during the commission of a crime
to kill brutally
informal to destroy; ruin: he murdered her chances of happiness
informal to defeat completely; beat decisively: the home team murdered their opponents
Origin of murder
1- Also (archaic or dialect): murther
Derived forms of murder
- murderer, noun
- murderess, fem n
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
Other Idioms and Phrases with murder
In addition to the idiom beginning with murder
- murder will out
also see:
- get away with (murder)
- scream bloody murder
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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