carnage

noun

car·​nage ˈkär-nij 

1

: the flesh of slain animals or humans

… a multitude of dogs came to feast on the carnage.

—T. B. Macaulay

2

: great and usually bloody slaughter or injury (as in battle)

the carnage of war

Synonyms of carnage

• massacre
• slaughter

Examples of carnage in a Sentence

Reporters described the highway accident as a scene of carnage.

the appalling carnage in that war-torn country requires that the outside world intervene

Recent Examples on the Web

On its walls are commemorated more than 72,000 British soldiers still missing from the war cemeteries that dot the landscape of the Somme valley, 72,000 people whose bodies were never identified from the carnage. —Literary Hub, 27 May 2026

The two embraced in the closing moment and took a breath days before the inevitable carnage that is set to take place. —Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 26 May 2026

In Iraq, militants used powerful but crude explosive devices; two decades later, Armonda had to deal with the carnage wrought by cluster bombs and thermobaric explosions. —Martha Raddatz, The Atlantic, 25 May 2026

The carnage of World War II led to several innovations, including tank designs that emphasized armor protection and firepower to an entirely new degree. —Matthew S Williams, Interesting Engineering, 20 May 2026

Word History

Etymology

French, from Medieval Latin carnaticum tribute consisting of animals or meat, from Latin carn-, caro — see carnal

First Known Use

1614, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

carnage

noun

car·​nage ˈkär-nij 

: great destruction of life (as in battle) : slaughter