slaughter
[ slaw-ter ]
/ ˈslɔ tər /
noun
the killing or butchering of cattle, sheep, etc., especially for food.
the brutal or violent killing of a person.
the killing of great numbers of people or animals indiscriminately; carnage: the slaughter of war.
verb (used with object)
QUIZZES
HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!
Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
Origin of slaughter
1250–1300; Middle English slaghter, slahter, slauther (noun) < Old Norse slātr, earlier slāttr, slahtr
SYNONYMS FOR slaughter
2 murder.
4–6 Slaughter, butcher, massacre all imply violent and bloody methods of killing. Slaughter and butcher, primarily referring to the killing of animals for food, are used also of the brutal or indiscriminate killing of human beings: to slaughter cattle; to butcher a hog. Massacre indicates a general slaughtering of helpless or unresisting victims: to massacre the peasants of a region.
OTHER WORDS FROM slaughter
slaugh·ter·er, nounslaugh·ter·ing·ly, adverbun·slaugh·tered, adjectiveWords nearby slaughter
slatkin, slattern, slatternly, slatting, slaty, slaughter, slaughterhouse, slaughterman, slaughterous, slav, slav.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for slaughtered
British Dictionary definitions for slaughtered
slaughter
/ (ˈslɔːtə) /
noun
verb (tr)
Derived forms of slaughter
slaughterer, nounslaughterous, adjectiveWord Origin for slaughter
Old English sleaht; related to Old Norse slāttar hammering, slātr butchered meat, Old High German slahta, Gothic slauhts, German Schlacht battle
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
Idioms and Phrases with slaughtered
slaughter
see like a lamb to the slaughter.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.