tyrannicide

[ ti-ran-uh-sahyd, tahy- ]

/ tɪˈræn əˌsaɪd, taɪ- /

noun

the act of killing a tyrant.

a person who kills a tyrant.

Nearby words

typw., typy, tyr, tyramine, tyrannical, tyrannicide, tyrannize, tyrannosaur, tyrannosaurus, tyrannosaurus rex, tyrannous

Origin of tyrannicide

1640–50; < Latin tyrrannicīdium (def 1), tyrannicīda (def 2). See tyrant, -i- -cide

Related forms

ty·ran·ni·cid·al, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for tyrannicide

Others unpacked their hearts with words in tyrannicide declamations and imitations of Greek tragedy.
The Conflict of Religions in the Early Roman Empire|T. R. Glover
Upon whom should the poems, a medley of tyrannicide and revolutionary raving, be fathered?
Shelley|John Addington Symonds
When the study of the classics had penetrated the nation with antique ideas of heroism, tyrannicide became a virtue.
Sketches and Studies in Italy and Greece, Second Series|John Addington Symonds
And so it came to pass that the pamphlet appeared with the title—'Tyrannicide: is it Justifiable?
Charles Bradlaugh: a Record of His Life and Work, Volume I (of 2)|Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner and J. M. (John Mackinnon) Robertson

The essay, as I had written it, was entitled 'Tyrannicide, a Justification.'
Charles Bradlaugh: a Record of His Life and Work, Volume I (of 2)|Hypatia Bradlaugh Bonner and J. M. (John Mackinnon) Robertson

British Dictionary definitions for tyrannicide

tyrannicide

/ (tɪˈrænɪˌsaɪd) /

noun

the killing of a tyrant

a person who kills a tyrant

Derived Forms

tyrannicidal, adjective

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