carcass

noun

car·​cass ˈkär-kəs 

1

: a dead body : corpse

especially : the dressed body of a meat animal

Butchers trimmed the meat from the carcass.

2

: the living, material, or physical body

It was nearly noon when he finally hauled his carcass out of bed.

3

: the decaying or worthless remains of a structure

the carcass of an abandoned automobile

4

: the underlying structure or frame of something (as of a piece of furniture)

Synonyms of carcass

• corpse

Examples of carcass in a Sentence

the rusting carcass of an old truck

the carcass of a squirrel that had been run over

Recent Examples on the Web

After the impact, a juvenile orca is seen eating some of the smaller pieces of the fish, while the adults eat from the remaining carcass. — Matthew Glasser, ABC News, 23 July 2026

The whale then lets go, before another orca rams into the sunfish carcass at a high speed. — Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 23 July 2026

Just after, the same operator filmed one of the adult females holding the carcass of a sunfish in her mouth. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 23 July 2026

Inspectors instructed the manager of the long-standing corner diner in the city’s Lakeview neighborhood to remove all roach carcasses and to tightly seal the bottom of the main door and basement door to prevent more pests from entering. — Zareen Syed, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English carcays, from Anglo-French carcas, carkeis

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for carcass

• arcus

Kids Definition

carcass

noun

car·​cass ˈkär-kəs 

: a dead body

especially : the body of a meat animal prepared for market

Medical Definition

carcass

noun

car·​cass ˈkär-kəs 

: a dead body : corpse

especially : the dressed body of a meat animal